2009
October 2009
Patrick didn't get a moose this year, but our niece Kaylin did.  It was her first moose, and according to tradition, she gave the meat away to elders and those who didn't get a moose... so we were blessed to recieve!  Patrick's getting things ready for winter now, which is just on our doorstep.  At this moment, he is out siting in his rifle with Sabbath.

Last week was the Yukon Jamboree for Sobriety.  I performed with some of our students and staff at Ptarmigan Hall on both nights of the Jamboree at Sydney Huntington gym.  I met a couple fabulous musicians from Talkeetna, and look forward to doing some music in their neck of the woods next summer.

Speaking of fabulous musicians, it was a joy to perform with Vince Cherico, Vardan Ovsepian and Josh Davis during the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival this year.  We played a song I wrote "Serrated (What About?)" during lunch bites.  At the Gala finale performance of the Festival, I sang coros & played clave on Barry Olsen's commissioned arrangement of "Besame Mucho".  For that performance, I joined Vince, Vardan & Josh again, along with Valerie Naranjo, Barry Olsen, and some terrific horn players.

Dad's in town helping Kim & Jason do electrical work on their new garage.  It will be wonderful for them to be able to easily use their car now at cold temperatures and work on mechanical things indoors.

June 2009
So much has happened this year! Our 4-wheeler broke down, so Patrick ordered a new one which recently arrived - he's having a blast breaking in the engine. His summer continues to be exciting with his departure for his first volunteer service at Kokrine Hills Bible Camp. He'll be the camp cook for about 10 days.




My summer should be excellent as well. I was able to get a short babysitting job so that will help a bit with the financial drought of summer in Galena for me. In July, I join my brother David and friend Hope at Young Life Camp in Michigan with our Alaskan teens. That's always a blast! When I return from that camp, I'll get to hang out with my niece for a little bit in southcentral Alaska before heading up to Fairbanks for the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival. I'm really looking forward to soaking in more music goodness & reconnecting with friends and colleagues I met last year at the festival.

Tidbits from the couple

Autumn 2008
Patrick is geared up for the hunt!  He harvested a bear and is aiming now for a moose to keep our freezer full this winter.  Our brother Jason has a boat and will be dropping Patrick off somewhere in the Middle Yukon to find the moose.  Today he brought home six grouse too.  With the high cost of gas ($7/gallon), hunting is a bit more expensive, so everyone is having to be frugal with the number of trips out.  For now, Patrick is hunting after he gets off work, but in a couple weeks, he's taking time off to spend in the woods... hoping for a moose in his sites.

As for me, I'm trying to settle into some sort of routine with my new job.  I'm now the Music & Arts Program Director at Galena Interior Learning Academy's Ptarmigan Hall.  That job is 30 hours per week, which hopefully will leave room for my songwriting and performing pursuits.  It also allows me to sleep at home EVERY night (the last four years as Residential Advisor have not allowed me this luxury).  In addition to the Hall position, have about 10 private music students to supplement my lessened work hours at the Hall.

This summer, we had hoped to get lots of time in together... and in June, we did have three wonderful weeks!  But with July came changes of plans.  Patrick noted how much I was gleaning at the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival, and gave the nod for me to stay on an additional week to study Jazz Piano & Gospel Piano.  I was honored to win a solo audition for the festival's gospel choir performance which closed out the festival.  I studied Jazz with Armenian composer, Vardan Ovsepian who is BRILLIANT!  Vince Cherico, Valerie Naranjo, Barry Olsen, all of NYC also pitched in on my jazz & world music education.  And I can't say enough about Bobby Lewis and Eustace Johnston (of NYC and Harlem) who brought such joy via the gospel choir.  God really blessed me with a fabulous, supportive husband - he knew exactly what I needed.

Summer 2008
The final semester of work at GILA's Ptarmigan Hall left me pretty worn out.  We still had 120 students at the residence hall, with the small staff we had when we only had 92 students.  It was quite challenging, though rewarding as well.  For the second year, I coordinated our music festival; check out our website: www.myspace.com/riffnhookmusicfestival.  Our guest musician was Ken Pierce, who now resides in Yakutat.  It was a very positive experience for all involved.

Patrick is working part-time at the Dining Hall this summer, and I'm not working at this time.  I'll be headed out to Young Life Camp in Michigan with Native Alaskan teens and my brother David, who is the full-time Young Life missionary here in Galena.  Patrick, Sabbath and I have enjoyed the relaxation of summer, after a hectic school year. We've taken four-wheeler rides down lonely, beautiful trails in the wilderness, harvested rhubarb at the Dunes, read books and revelled in each others' company.  Good times.

December 18
Today Patrick brought up his finished project of the last few weeks: a tanned lynx hide.  After a number of weeks trapping only small animals, Patrick finally caught a beautiful lynx and tonight he should me the finished fur.  It is indeed lovely and very warm.

I just returned from my first voyage to the Alaskan Southeast.  Ben Blasco & I coached the Galena Hawks wrestling team to a 16th place finish at the state championship wrestling finals in Sitka, Alaska.  Of the six Hawk wrestlers which qualified for State, one wrestler finished 3rd in the entire state for 1-3A schools and another finished 5th. I got to see a number of friends from my past days at Anchorgae Christian Schools, Grace Christian Schools and Cornerstone Church while there - wonderful reunion amidst the excitement.  We're proud of all of the Hawk wrestlers who've worked so hard in practice and in healthy nutrition to finish strong.  I'd love to visit Sitka again one day, or anywhere in the Southeast and do some exploring - it seemed a lovely, lush area.

Another highlight of the last month was getting to spend time with musical genius, Ken Pierce.  I started by taking jazz lessons from him and eventually we did some jamming and recording.  We also did a House Concert a couple weekends ago which was a joy to us as well as the audience in that intimate setting.  We performed a couple of my originals along with Summertime by Gershwin,  Arioso by Bach, Nina by Pergolese, Amazing Grace, Strange Fruit and some jamming at the end.  Ken is virtuosic on the guitar and brings chills to his listeners when he plays the cello.  Time spent with Ken was certainly a boon to my own musicianship and creativity.  I will miss his presence in Galena, but we plan to continue a musical correspondence as he travels from place to place on this globe.

November 25
Today is my niece Kaylin's 13th birthday.  Last weekend as I watched Veggie Tales with the boarding school teens, I remembered the first time I saw those cartoons.  David brought one home for Kaylin who was around 2 or 3 years old.  That scene is vivid in my mind and wow, how time flies... Kaylin is a young woman now.

In other news, our wrestling team took 6th place in Kotzebue, which is good considering we have so many beginners; for some it was their first matches of the season.  So out of 17 teams, we got 6th and the teens did awesome.  My brother got to come along; we couldn't have done it without his chaperoning help.

Patrick has been setting his trapline and camp and loves it.  He has some good pics of the camp that I'll have to post.  He took me snowmachining on Tuesday - it was my maiden wilderness voyage - and we had a blast. 

October 11
Much has happened since our last update.  Patrick moose hunt with David and Dad was successful and we now have a freezer full of meat for the winter.  It's exciting to have such a blessing to share with elders and others in the community.  Nearly every day, Patrick has also been hunting for grouse to use in traplines this winter.  His largest harvest in one day was 10 birds!  Our nephew Daniel is also exuberant about hunting grouse and comes over to help Uncle Patrick on occasion.

I am assisting with the Galena Wrestling Team again this year and am finding it very rewarding.  This weekend is our first tournament and we're bringing nine eligible wrestlers.  We have about 20 teens on the team who will hopefully be set to go to our next competition. 

Young Life started off big in September and continues to be a positive time for our youth.  At one club, we had 51 teens attend!  This weekend, we're hosting a Beach Party at the community pool and the youth are really looking forward to it.  David is discipling a young man weekly and we hope to get some Bible Studies going soon as well.

Last weekend, I performed with a couple GILA teens at the Yukon Jamboree for Sobriety.  Our little band was the first of its kind to play there; traditionally, only fiddle bands perform at the Jamboree.  We played some old rock like Rock Around the Clock, Stand by Me, Old Time Rock & Roll.  All those who came to the dances were very pleased about our music and I was very proud of Craig, Bo & Tyler (the teens) who were able to rehearse three times and pull it all together.

June 23

Patrick and I celebrated our FOURTH wedding anniversary on Thursday, June 21st.  He was unwell that day so I got off work early and fixed some yummy food for us to eat while we had some chill time together.  I've told some of you that this is what I'm calling Our Summer of Togetherness.  God has really given us a wonderful gift of togetherness this summer, starting with getting BOTH of us summer jobs.  Patrick is working for Rand at the GILA dining hall and I'm a maintenance woman for the school district.  I was able to match my work schedule to his and even though I'm not a morning person, I love that we get to ride to work together at 5:30am and come home together around 2pm.  So we get to spend time together EVERY DAY, as opposed to seven days per month.  MM-MMM GOOD!

June 6
I just returned from south central Alaska where I performed at a banquet in Wasilla which raised money for Galena Young Life.  The banquet program was poignant and beautiful - the best of the past banquets.  The funds that came in were the least of all banqets.  But we'll just need to trust the Lord more to provide for the needs of Galena Young Life, which are greater this year than past years.

It's refreshing to be home with Patrick and Sabbath after nine months of working at the residence hall and being home only 8 days per month.  Now, after being home for just three days in a row with them, I am revelling and regenerated.  Since I don't have a job of any sort at the moment, I am basking in TIME: time in prayer, time in creativity, time in cleaning, time in cooking, time hanging out with Patrick, time in BEING.

Patrick just got some temporary summer work which will help keep us afloat another month along with my piano lesson monies from April & May.  We have a decision to make in this regard.  Galena Young Life has asked us to go to Oregon in July to bring greetings to supporters there.  Please pray with us that God will give us clear direction.  Someone has already stepped up to provide the airfare, our only other big catch is that we will have no income during that 8-day period, which, when every penny counts, is huge.  Pray with us.

April 23
We've had some great activities at the Residential Hall this month.  Last weekend, I played with the other female staff members in a basketball game against female students.  We split the series 1 - 1.  At the end of March, we had the RIFF@N*HOOK Music Festival (www.myspace.com/riffnhookmusicfestival), which featured a week of music ensemble classes, industry workshops, music appreciation workshops, lessons, music documentaries, adjudications, competitions and performances.  It was amazing!

Now I'm preparing for my concert on April 28th while Patrick is preparing our home, four-wheeler and property for the summer.

March 5
February was packed with events like the Hands & Feet Super Bowl Party, The Valentine's Basketball Tournament, Young Life club and the YL Valentine's Banquet.  I provided the live musical entertainment at the banquet and had a co-worker and student join me on a few songs.  During the basketball tournament, I sang the anthem several times.

Patrick has been setting up a trapline and enjoys taking the snow machine out to check it whenever he can.  It's been pretty cold, but he loves the time out in nature.  Patrick's birthday is coming up in a few weeks so we'll be scoping out a day to celebrate it.

Later in March, I'm hosting a music festival at Wilderness Hall.  Should be a blast!

January 20, 2007: Back in Gear and Full Speed Ahead!
Patrick and I reveled in our three weeks of togetherness over winter break, so it was difficult getting back into the daily grind of work.  We have some new students at Wilderness Hall and we're developing new programs to augment the students' education and life experience while in Galena.  Patrick is ever the happy chef in the Dining Hall; it's absolutely WONDERFUL to get to see him for a few minutes at lunch or sometimes dinner each day during our work week.  But it's even better when we get to be together on our days off, since during the work week... well... we see each other for about 15 minutes in total.

Patrick fixed both of our vehicles which wisely decided to break down during the winter break rather than during the work season.  He's such a capable man!  I have enjoyed working on vehicles in the past, but with Patrick figuring things out on that side of things, I have more time for music and program development.

January 4, 2007
Patrick and I settled in for a lovely evening of New Year's Eve.  I prepared a special meal complete with stuffed mushrooms and sparkling blueberry juice and he was in charge of the fireworks show.  This day as well as the surrounding days of vacation have proved to be rich time spent together.  It's hard to believe we'll be returning to the crazy schedule soon where our time together will be few and far between.

During this vacation, I drove our snow-go for the first time and Patrick was quite proud.  He's taken a number of short snow machine trips around the Galena area, including one trip with our brother Jason.

I was blessed to be able to fly out to Fairbanks for a few days in order to see my best girlfriend Jen and her husband Jimmy aka Yen and Yimmy, aka Fer and her hubby.  It was a great time of refreshing to be with the Bacon family as well as my Dad, brother, sister and her family.

But it's good to be home again with my little family.

11/13
Patrick went galevanting today on our snow-go for the first time.  Snow-go is what folks in the village call snow machines, which is what Alaskans call snow mobiles.  (We can tell if you're from the Lower 48 if you say 'snow mobile'. muAHhahaha!)  Anyway, he's giddy like a school boy, even in 13 below temps.  Patrick says, It was nice to be able to go out and be anywhere I wanted!

I feasted upon pancakes with homemade wild blueberry syrup this morning.  It feels good to use ingredients that were recently harvested from the earth.  And we still have many berries in our freezer that are awaiting their turns in luscious recipes to come!



10/18/06 - We've started yet another school year with Galena City School District's GILA, but only after having a lovely summer of foraging in the wilds, visiting dear friends and family in Oregon, and getting a moose for our winter larder. 
 
Patrick's first moose!

The dorm has 60 percent more students than last year, but with the same number of staff, so things are regrettably less personal.  I have 13 young ladies in my quad, most of whom are seniors & juniors.  Young Life started a few weeks ago and nearly 40 students attended (from both GILA and the city school).  I wrote a silly song for that YL club meeting, Kim planned some great jello games, and Diane tied it all together by speaking about a foundation of jello or one of rock... she then told the story of The Wise Man and The Foolish Man.  Yesterday we got word that a local young man took his life.  He graduated from Galena a few years ago, so not only is the local community affected, but our current and past students at the boarding school.  We'll have another YL Club next week, so pray that we'll be able to offer some hope to the young people in a way that will truly impact them.

5/05/06
Forgive me for slacking on our journal here or even on blogspot.  I set up a MySpace acct and have some stuff there - I hope to keep up with it better after school is finished.  The above picture was taken after we watched some Iditerod action in town.  Now we're fully into Break-up season and having more comfortable temperatures.  The top will come off our 4-wheeler soon, I'm sure.

01/04/2006 
We've moved our Tibits to a blogsite so that it's easier to manage text and archives.  To view news about us, click http://www.karrielpa.blogspot.com. There is opportunity for viewers to post responsive comments as well, if they wish.

November 28
Patrick and I spent Thanksgiving dinner with the Kopps and community friends, including students and staff from GILA.  The food was delicious as usual and I enjoyed being a part of a group comprised of so many talented and hard-working cooks, even though I only contributed stuffed mushrooms and a couple apple crisps.  Though I had to work the morning of that day and the day before, it felt good to be with Patrick for a few more hours than our normal schedule allows.

November 19
I write to you tonight from above the arctic circle in the town of Kotzebue.  Kotz is a western coastal Inupaaq city of around 3,000 people.  This was my first time in Kotzebue or above the arctic circle, as was true for a number of the Galena wrestlers that I'm here chaperoning.  Our team placed 8th out of 20 teams from all over the state, ranking two wrestlers at fourth place.  After our consolation finals, the mother of one of my GILA students picked us up to host us for a wonderful dinner in her home.  It was so wonderful to meet her, her husband and other children; I would have loved to stay and visit longer with them.  I also met another mom of a GILA student and some of her other kids.  Though I'm nearly excrutiatingly tired from the weekends events, I am blessed to have had this opportunity with my students above the arctic circle.

November 16
This weekend I'll be in Kotzebue for the first time.  I look forward to meeting some of our wrestlers' parents and viewing the ocean from such a northern locale.

November 8
At this moment, Patrick the Handyman is putting up a big shelf in our upstairs closet so I can unpack some more boxes and get on to making our place homey. We love the upstairs area of our home and feel like it's our own special get-away.  This weekend, Patrick and Jason will be fixing things up so we will have running water... YES!  We both look forward to washing our clothes and dishes here, taking showers here and yes, using our BATH TUB.  Baths are definitely a luxury up here in the bush.

On Sunday, I returned from Homer, Alaska with the Galena Wrestling Team.  I love assisting the teens and the head coach while getting to know my students better.  Homer was absolutely gorgeous; it reminded me how much I miss the mountains while living in Galena.  Because there is a russian settlement near Homer, I got to hear pockets of russian conversation in the gymnasium while awaiting the next match - I could understand a few words at least, which was so refreshing.  Our team got 6th place; two of our boys got 3rd.  I enjoyed meeting up with coaches from all over the state again, including ones that I'd known in my high school days.  And at the beginning of the trip, I got to visit with my dad for about an hour; I am truly blessed.

September 27

Yesterday, Patrick and I installed the kitchen cabinets and today, he moved the appliances and set the countertop and sink.  My sister and her hubby, along with her eldest daughter aided us with a variety of activities such as the installation of the composting toilet, cabinet handles and sweeping & clean-up.  Today I'll be packing more of our belongings to lug down the street later in the evening.  The plan is to be sleeping there tonight... we shall see!

September 18

This weekend we painted walls and ceilings and at this moment, Patrick is painting our floors.  Students from GILA came to help us out last week and had a great time sweeping and cleaning while chatting about how the house will look when completed.  A co-worker of mine will help us with some finish work this week.

August 29

The time has come for teens from all over the state of Alaska to return to Galena for school.  Patrick is back at the Dining Hall, serving up food with a smile to the students and staff, and I am a Resident Advisor in the dorms there.  Patrick had his hours changed so that he is off work at 1pm and able to catch a quick nap before going over to work on the house.  We plan to be in our little house by October 1st.

Patrick and I have found a new joy this fall - riding slowly down secluded trails on the four-wheeler.  With trees arching over us, mossy stumps and cranberry bushes on the side of us, it allows for a peaceful communion with each other that we have yet to find elsewhere.  We get to chat about a myriad of things that are important to us and praise God together for His goodness.  It's so much better than just going from A to B, even if it is raining!

August 1

Patrick has been trucking away at the house and has the insulation completed.  He is in the process of hanging the sheet rock now, though it is slow-going with a recent back injury.  During this time, I was away with Alaskan youth at Young Life camp in Michigan, which was amazing!  After the camp, I met my sister and her family in Fairbanks to bulk up on our year's supplies as well as some supplies for our new little house.  It's so good to be home again with Patrick and Sabbath.  The barge will bring all our Fairbanks trappings to us here in Galena via the Yukon River within the next several weeks.

July 11
I am amazed at how quickly our house is coming along!  For two weeks now, it's had walls, floors and a roof.  As of last week, the plumbing and electrical portions of the project are complete.  Tomorrow, Patrick begins the insulation installation.  After I return to Alaska from the Young Life Camp trip, I'll be meeting Kim and her family in Fairbanks, where we'll be picking up the rest of the house supplies, from light fixtures to valves and hopefully a mattress and a few other things we'd really like to have.  The Kopps have been so gracious to us, letting us use their furnished studio apartment.  People in our church have given us a table and chairs.  We rejoice at how the Lord provides for us!

We celebrated Independence Day with Dad, Kaylin, Amanda and Daniel.  Patrick prepared a fireworks display for us at the River, where the kids made a slimey mud pie, waded and even submerged in the Yukon.  The children were delighted with Uncle Patrick's antics.

Jason moves the lumber at our lot.

June 8
This week, Patrick and I began our jobs working at a vocational camp for high school students here in Galena.  He does the cooking and I am the activities director.  He works until around 5pm and I begin work at 8:30pm, so we have a few hours together each day, which is great compared to the school year schedule we have.

We're awaiting the barge which will bring supplies for our house.  Jason will be framing it with the help of Patrick and possibly a former PERS student.

May 30
Patrick and Jason are coming home looking like coal miners from our property, where they have been drilling pilings for our house.  Add mosquitos and hot weather, and it may not be the most exciting way to spend the summer, but the reward will be wonderful. 

The PERS students have gone back to their towns and villages now and the staff has all flown out as well, except for me.  I will be the only returning RA in the fall.  My floor manager is returning, which is great. At this time, they have filled the female RA positions for the fall, but there are no male RAs or a male floor manager at this time.  Pray for the right people to fill those positions.  My brother David (boy's floor manager at PERS) will be taking classes at UAF and working at the boarding school in Nenana.  We will really miss him but we know he will make a positive, loving impact for the Lord on those with which he comes in contact.

Kim and I both did some spring cleaning today... my place really needed it too!  Patrick was pleased to come back and find a new apartment hehe!

On Sunday, I led the praise & worship time with a new friend from Minnesota named Andi.  She plays the djembe fearlessly and it was the perfect complement to my singing and playing.  We had a blast and plan to jam during the summer while she is in Galena.

April 26

Our biggest news is that we've just purchased land in Galena!  We'll be building a 24'x24' home this summer on the same street where Kim & her family live.  Patrick will probably be clearing some trees by Thursday already.  Jason will be the general contractor, Dad will be the electrician.  And then Patrick and whoever else he finds will do the rest.  This month, we also celebrated David's 29th birthday.  Kim prepared a fabulous meal of turkey and prime rib as well as side dishes for the big party.  There were around 30 people there.  Last weekend I got to lead the praise & worship time at church with our friend Perry who plays guitar.  It felt so good to do that again.  They've asked us to lead again next Sunday.  It's too bad for us that Perry and his family are moving to Soldotna, but it sure has been a blessing for both of us to meet that family.

April 3

We celebrated Patrick's birthday (3/24) with my sister and her family and my brother David.  The little girls made a paper birthday crown for Uncle Patrick and also presented a lovely performance of Happy Birthday featuring dancing, singing and playing the piano.  For the birthday feast, Kim cooked some delicious steaks & made a salad, I made stuffed mushrooms, David made roasted potatoes and then he made milkshakes for the birthday dessert.  Since Patrick has been jonesing for the TV show Law & Order, I gave him some DVDs of the show; that night we watched FIVE episodes!  Craziness, but hey, it's his birthday, he can do what he wants.  Amanda, who is learning how to read & write, made a red card for Ungel Pachrik and slipped a tootsie roll inside the card.

March 23

I just returned from Anchorage.  Last week at the last minute, I was asked to be a chaperone for the girls' basketball team.  They took third place in the state!  During the championship game, I got to sit with my good friend Brenda and her sister who were cheering their alma mater Ninilchik.  Before that, I got to spend some quality time with my PERS gals, be with my dad for Friday, go shopping, and have a surprise meeting at the mall with Kim (Pressley) Hewitt from my high school days.  Dad helped me pack my trappings in totes after taking me to The Moose's Tooth for lunch... yummy!

February 18 - Month of Action

Well, we've had lots of action here since moving to Galena, but February has been especially booked with special events.  David returned from Mexico and just a few days later, we put on the Young Life Benefit Sweetheart Banquet.  Kim, David, the Corsetti family, Lynne, Young Life youth and I worked our little heinies off to make a beautiful romantic evening for about 65 Galena residents.  Patrons danced to live music by yours truly and David, ate shrimp cocktail served by students, and chatted by candlelight.  Kim and other community members baked a large number of lasagnas that day, assembled the chicken caesar salad and peeled pounds upon pounds of shrimp!  The day after the banquet, we heard sentiments from countless attendees that they would buy tickets for something like this every month.  So it was a success in many ways.

The night before, we hosted a Youth Social at church as a gift to the teens in the area, especially the ones who are so far away from family.  We had games, plenty of yummy treats (including some native foods), and a two-step dance at the end, led by a couple elders.  We also took a few moments to talk about love.  That afternoon, Hands and Feet students joined with a cherished elder of theirs to make Fry Bread at Kim's house for the Social.  Fry Bread is essentially a native doughnut that can be dressed up as a savory or sweet treat, or eaten plain.  On the drive home from the social, students talked about how they hope they get to go to something like that again.

During January and part of February, I got to lead music at the church.  It was so good for my spirit, mind and body, which I think is how God designs us --- the gifts and passions He gives us, make us more complete when we obey Him and use them for Him.  So when I had the opportunity to do this, I ran through the open door, as my friend Julia would say.  I had the honor of doing that for four Sundays and revelled in it.  There's not much like giving an offering of music to the Lord and seeing others respond to the power of His Spirit because of it.  I'm hoping I will get to do it again one day soon.

The extreme temperatures have wreaked a little more havoc upon the four wheeler and now we're awaiting the arrival of a new hose before we can get it going again.  David has been gracious to let me use his car still a little bit even though he is back.  We've had LOTS of snow.  Hopefully I can get a picture of it.  But before the snow came the temperatures of 40 and 50 below zero.  I never thought I'd be rejoicing over the WARMTH of 1 degree below zero.

January 27

When he looked out our window this morning, Patrick loved what he saw so much that he planned a snowshoeing expedition.  Under a clear, frigid, sunny sky, he set out for the frozen Yukon.  When he returned, he was excited to tell me that he crossed the river on snowshoes; this was his first time ever snowshoeing.  It was good for him to get outside and enjoy frost-covered trees and mounds of snow from that vantage rather than zipping by on our four-wheeler which he just fixed yesterday.  (We're so thankful that it's working again!)

1/22  Heat Wave?

Ahhh, it's warmed up to 5 below zero and oddly enough it feels close to heaven.  The cold weather we've had over the last several weeks (with temps to 55 below zero) has been trying!  On one day that was -45 degrees, the four wheeler seized and smoked.  As is customary here, someone picked up the stranded Patrick and took him home.  We're awaiting the part's arrival so Patrick can fix it up soon!

Last night, Patrick and I attended the Young Life club meeting for the first time.  David, who usually leads it was out of town but he left plans for us to follow.  I was in charge of the Trivia Time and Patrick tossed out candy to the students who answered the questions correctly.  We had a good time.  Speaking of David, he's down in Mexico for several weeks with IDEA students in their Classroom with a View spanish immersion program.  We miss him already, and he's only been gone a couple days.  But I'm sure he is revelling in the warmth that we are craving up here.

Last Sunday I got to lead the music at church for the first time.  How I'd missed it!  I'd had a lung ailment for so long which prevented me from doing much singing at all.  Then a woman came and prayed over me and from that moment, I was being healed!  Amazing!  I wish I would have tried that first BEFORE the antibiotics, herbs and other things I tried, hehehe!  Anyway, I felt so free, and more myself than I have since we moved to Galena.  I introduced the congregation to The Love of My God (How High) written by our good friend Dave Blok and they just loved it.  My heart was sad when we left Bend because there were many friends we didn't even get to tell we were moving because things were so crazy... Dave & his family were among those.  I think about them often, and even more so now that citizens of Galena are learning one of his wonderful songs.

1/8/2005

Today I took a student to watch the JV Girls Basketball team play female community members.  It turned out they were very short in numbers for the community team, so I played!  (It took me back to the staff versus Junior High boys game at Central Christian Schools last year.)  The JV gals did a great job and STOMPED us!  I did score half our teams points, but considering how many shots I missed, I certainly cannot give myself accolades over it.  Three of the JV gals live on my hall, Olin Hall, so it was particularly savory to stuff some of their shots.  And then again, I'm sure they were entertained at how often my butterfingers allowed a turnover. We all had a terrific time.

One reason I'm writing about this, is that it's a bit of a miracle that I was able to play.  I've had a lung ailment for over one month now, that neither herbs nor antibiotics have licked.  But last week I asked a woman from the church to come pray for me.  Patrick, my brother David, and Kim's family all prayed with her.  I'd had a pain in my ribs, and while Chris prayed for me, it felt like it was hot.  It felt so much better!  Since that night, my health has steadily improved.  I still can't believe I played a ball game today.  It really boggles me and I praise the Lord for His faithfulness to me.  Now I'm just praying that the healing will be complete so I can sing again.

This week has been around 20 degrees... yes, ABOVE zero... hurray!  The sunsets have been vibrantly beautiful.  I took Sabbath out on my day off and tossed snow chunks at him; he loves to try to catch them!

Patrick and I took a small spill on our fourwheeler yesterday morning.  I always wear a helmet and I was glad for my choice.  Patrick's head landed on his arm, so his head is fine.  I have a huge knotty bruise on my leg from the impact, but we weren't crushed under the machine, nor did we sprain or break anything -  just one more thing for which to be thankful.

Here is a photo of the December baptism of five gals from PERS who decided to follow God:

12/21 We've been married 1.5 years Today!

Today Patrick invited Sabbath and I for a jaunt in the snow-covered grass lake behind the house.  December has been warm for Galena and feels like the winters to which we were accustomed in Bend.  The snow is powdery and we giggled at the sight of Sabbath loping and leaping through the depths of it.  Patrick enjoyed trying out his set of new binoculars that also take digital photos at long range.  He'd tell us to take a long walk... No farther... and Keep going! until we were at a good enough distance in the woods to take a good picture.

The PERS students have all returned to their homes around the state and things have quieted down.  Patrick and I finally have some bulk time to enjoy each others' company and play with Sabbath in our home.  Although, for five days of our 14 days off, I'll be in Willow visiting Dad and the Bacons.  And as usual, when travelling to the city, I'll be doing some shopping!  We're making our list and checking it twice even now.  Well actually, Patrick is snoozing on the couch with Pirates of the Carribean playing in the background.

11/15 The powedery snow has been falling gently today - they expect 10 inches of accumulation.  Patrick's ride home from work will be an enjoyable one as he vrooms through the powder on our four-wheeler upon which he has attached a bit of a shack to protect us from the wind.  Thankfully, he now rides to a home with walls not made of canvas as we've moved into my sister's studio apartment.  It's wonderful to be warm!  We enjoy being close to Kaylin, Amanda & Daniel and hear the pitter-patter and sometimes stompy-clompy of their feet above us.

Today I flew back to Galena from Anchorage with our wrestling team that I chaperone.  We have two gals and two guys that work very hard every morming at 6am before school to prepare themselves for competition.  This trip took us to a tournament in Homer which, though it was overcast and foggy, was still beautiful.  I got to see a very chubby bald eagle perched on a piling on the Homer Spit after I took a short walk along the beach.  The peace and stillness was therapeutic.  Before we flew back from Anchorage, I had the joy of visiting with some good friends from Cornerstone Church, my piano teacher Mrs. Rios and our good friends Ben & Brenda DeVries along with their children.  All in all, it was a pleasant trip, and our freshman wrestler Roberto won his first match!

Patrick is now working full-time in the Dining Hall, so we get to greet each other at least once a day on campus in between our days off.  He is really loving it here.  He's just hooked up my computer at home, so hopefully on one of my next days off I'll be able to get caught up on email and end the radio silence from our end.

9/19

The temperature is dropping as are the colorful autumn leaves; we can see our breath in the tent at night.  But we're snuggling in our sleeping bag underneath a down comforter.  I've gone berry picking here a number of times, sometimes with Kim and her children, other times with students from the residential hall here.  We have a good little store of low bush cranberries (lingonberries) and a few high bush cranberries.  I've made cranberry bread a couple times for the gals on my hall using the berries we've picked, and served Labrador Tea from leaves we foraged.  It's a joy to have the gals visit in my room.  We're starting to develop relationships with the teens here.  Patrick has gotten four grouse (wild chickens) so we're living a bit off the land and enjoying it.

Patrick is working part-time at the Dining Hall here at the school and is enjoying that.  When he's not there, he's working more on Kim's house.  We hope to have that done during the first week of October so Patrick and I can move inside.

I do hope to get a little email newsletter out soon, but computer time is limited thus far.  Once in the apartment, I'll have lots more time for electronic communication. 

8/11

We've been in Galena for six days now and have been enjoying the peace and beauty as we camp in my sister's back yard.  Sabbath has had a difficult time adjusting to different homes, including the temporary one in Fairbanks last week and now this outdoor setting.  But yesterday he showed more signs of comfort.  Patrick has been smiling more and smoking less, enjoying the slow pace and the fresh air.  He has several job applications out and now is waiting to see what will be next for him.

In the mean time, he is helping Jason Kopp build his three-story home.  In exchange, Jason & Kim have generously offered to let us stay in their downstairs apartment free of rent.  It is a blessing to know where we will be living now!

I start work on Sunday night.  I look forward to meeting the staff and learning what this new job truly entails.  For now though, I'm getting to spend time with Kim & her kiddoes while Patrick and Jason work on the house.  We've also gotten to meet quite a few good people.  The blessings continue, and even so, sometimes it's difficult to lay aside worries about things that are still left unknown.  All in all though, things are good here.

8/01/04 Time to leave

Patrick and I, along with Sabbath, are leaving Bend today - it's hard to believe the day is finally here.  We are sad to leave our friends and family, as well as our jobs and hobbies that we loved here in Central Oregon.  However, we're excited for this new adventure.  Please pray for us to find a place to live where Sabbath can join us, for Patrick to find a job that suits him, and for us to bring a light of hope to our new home in Galena.  We have butterflies in our stomachs as we enter into territory that is pretty much unknown to us... the feeling is difficult to describe, but I believe those of you who have uprooted and travelled to a very new place understand it.  Today we're cleaning the house - then it's off to Redmond to catch the plane.  We give our love to all of our dear ones in Central Oregon.  Thank you for loving and supporting us... we'll always be together in spirit and we hope to come visit in the summer.