Of my trip back to Michigan last week I thought I would post a couple of pictures just for fun. That and I get tired of looking at the same old posts. So here ya go. The picture of the dog is my dad's dog Maggie with sweet sunglasses on. She is funny. The cute one of Kendall is when she does this little face when she realizes you are taking a picture of her. The last one is of Hunter and I when we had our "date day" we went to the children's museum and the fish ladder and mcdonald's and just had a great time. It was great being home. I miss all of you my wonderful family. Love you to bits.

Correction of Lev's Email

Hey everybody.... I told you the wrong email for Levi....

This is his new email:

scottld@cvn75.navy.mil

Levi's New Email

Hey everyone, Levi has a new email address. He is currently out at sea and can only receive email through this email:

scottld@cvn.navy.mil

Much Love!

Easter

As you all can see, even if Jason and I had planned on coming home....it is not happening.

The snow started late tuesday night and hasn't stopped. It's a different world up here. My car has a spare tire on it and would not make it out of Marquette, let alone all the way down to GR and jason's truck....well...it's a FORD. Do I need to say anything else! : ) Just kidding hun! It's a great truck, just absolutely worthless in the snow. So, try as we might we are "stuck" here.

We have made alternate plans though. I had told Jason that I really wanted to have all of our friends over and make dinner, and he pointed out that that would cost more than I think it will. He was right so I let it go. But! I'm getting my Easter dinner. One of our friends who wasn't able to go home this weekend either had the same idea. So as of right now we have about 8-15 people coming to our teeny apartment for dinner tomorrow night...AND they are all bringing something. So i don't have to do all of the cooking!

It's amazing how God just knew that this was what I needed and figured it all out for me. I wish that I were going to be closer to all of you. But we will be home next weekend! I hope that everyone has a blessed day tomorrow and just soaks up all the love from your families!

lots of love from the UP! Stacey (p.s. that is me in the picture on wednesday night!)

A poem from years gone past, but a fathers wish none the less

TO PATRICK

I gave thee life, my little son,
And thou art part of me; Which part?
Would God I knew the Truth,
Then were my soul set free
From fretting fears all down the years,
From dull anxiety;

Lest I have given thee that part,
Which makes my angel weep,
That underworld whence lusts and lies,
Like vermin, crawl and creep
Across my visions and my prayers;
Whence selfish passions leap

To slay the very thing I love,
To crucify my Lord,
To strangle Jesus in my soul,
With coils of evil cord,
And force me spit my sins upon
The face my soul adored.

Fain would I give thee those bright wings
On which my spirit flies,
To talk with angels on the heights,
In solemn sweet surprise,
And win from Him, who is the Light
The poet’s open eyes.

To all our children I pray for the poet's open eyes.

Good friday

Well precious family this is the day we celebrate that Jesus was
willing to go to the cross FOR ME!!!!!! and anybody else who will believe
that. he did it for themselves. P.T.L.

you have no idea how this blog thing blesses your grandparents
we get to know you better and we want to know you better.

hey Derek I have a good photo of your Grande Musculo and I will
send it to you by snail mail then you can post it on the blog, I don't
have the ability yet to do that--- but I will.

Love and Prayers Gramps & Gramma T.B. O.G.I.G.

Happy Birthday Jessie!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSIE!!!

Luke's Open House

Hey Everyone! I have the final details for my open house. And guess what?? You are all invited!! : )

Sunday, June 3, 4:oo- 8:oo PM at the Scott residence. ---->

10510 Lauren Drive
Zeeland, MI 49464

If you have any ?'s feel free to ask!

Much love,

LUCAS

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNT SALLY!!!

Thank-you, Thank-you,Thank-you

Okay this my first posting but here I go. I just wanted to share with everyone that TerBeek & Scott Electric has received in the last two weeks the news that we were successful in getting a restaurant remodel project, and Jenison Bible Church Addition , and a new grocery store project north of Rockford !!!!! We are Blessed .We have had a very dry spell for new projects and we are rejoicing in the great news about this up and coming work for this summer. Love David

Ava Stickney - Cory and Tina Stickney's Bundle of Fun!

Hello TerBeeks from the Stickney's

I know it's been forever since I've posted anything to the blog... so here we are! We have news too! There's another Stickney on the way! :) HOW AMAZING!!! We are so excited! If I've calculated correctly, my due date would be November 30th!

I have been busy keeping up with our lives! Ava is growing and talking as much as she can figure out!! She is such a ham! I've been doing bookkeeping and consulting as a side income for almost a year now.

Cory is selling, selling, selling and making people laugh along the way! His latest favorite is "grandrapidscraigslist.org" he's selling and buying and as happy as can be! If you're looking to be rid of something.. there's no charge for this classified listing! :)

So, life is wonderful... we are loved and love. I think we need to have another family reunion, so I see you all more than one time a year! :)

We love and miss you all!
Tina and Cory Stickney

There's no place like home :)

Hi family! I'M HOME! I flew in late Mon. night and I'll be here in town until the beginning of June. It has been so wonderful to relax, talk, throw my toilet paper in the toilet ;)...lol- you know the comforts of the US :). ít was hard leaving Carlos, but we both know i needed to come home for a while (and my mom needed it too ;)) So here's an update from the Honduras end of the world...

I stopped teaching on March 2, which was really hard to do...the school didn't hire a new teacher until about a week later, and i know my students suffered because of that. the school had asked that i stay in Honduras to help transition the new teacher, however, i have had zero contact with her despite several attempts to connect with her...i've been frustrated with that situation mostly because in the end it's my students who get the short end of the stick so to speak...BUT, not much else i can do. Since then I've honestly been really bored...I'm just not used to so much time with so little to do. Libraries are a rare commodity in Tegus, so I was begging books off random people to pass the time. The library was one of my first stops yesterday since i've been home...I love the library!

The last few weeks have been a little more exciting however, because Carlos and i rented a little house in the neighborhood and i've been spending my time "nesting". To be honest since Carlos has been living there, a few things have come up that make the little place a lot less desirable. We both loved the house at first, it has a little yard with trees (and in Tegus yards REALLY don't exist), a big kitchen, one bedroom, and a nice size living/dining room. perfect for us just starting out. HOWEVER, what we didn't know until after Carlos moved in was that the water would turn off 12-14hrs at a time, the walls/ceilings are PAPER thin...there is another house directly above ours...and about a week after we moved, a family moved in upstairs and you can hear EVERYTHING...i mean bodily functions in the morning, conversations, footsteps etc. everything :). SO, since our rent is only month to month we probably won't be staying there much longer.

However, it was fun to go shopping for appliances and pillows and kitchen items together, you really learn a whole new side of a person by what they want in their house :). We are planning to get married legally in Honduras when i come back in June, and then having a "wedding/reception" here next summer (2008) (that way we can show off the baby and I wont be pregnant ;)). the sooner, the better...mostly because of the VISA situation. in order for Carlos to come to the states he has to get a Visa...and last year around May we tried to get one so he could visit over the summer, however...the US embassy denied our request. For me the main reason i want this is so that the baby can be born here. My number one priority is that Carlos is with me when the baby is born, and of course, i want to have the baby here...but Carlos needs a Visa to get in the states. The baby will be a US citizen no matter where he/she is born, but for my sake it would be more comfortable, not to mention having my mom there, to have the baby here. SO...getting a visa is a huge priority right now...

The way a Visa works is you pay the US embassy about $100 to be given an appointment at the embassy, the dates are usually a month-6wks after you make the intial payment. Then you make sure you have all your paperwork together...anything that would prove you have ties to your country (Honduras), such as a car payment, children, house payment etc. The embassy checks your bank account, your credit history, educational background etc etc, basically trying to weed those people out who are going to the States to stay. To be honest, its a frustrating process, with little guidelines as to who might be given a Visa or not, its all by "chance"...you go to the embassy the day of your appointment, you stand in line, you have an interview with someone...and they decide whether or not to issue the Visa. NOW...chances are much better if you are married to a US citizen, which is why Carlos and I want to get married before we go to the embassy. SO, i expain all of that to explain our thought processes as well... :)

We will be legally married in June, schedule the Visa appointment for early July so that we have been married for longer than a week :), NOW, if Carlos does not get the Visa I will stay in Honduras and have the baby there. I have no concerns medically having the baby there, the hospital is wonderful, just like you would find in the states, and my doctor is very qualified. It's just the comfort of my mom there, family around, and English spoken. BUT, first priority is to have Carlos there too. SO...if he does get the Visa, I will fly home again as late as i can being pregnant in July and wait the next month out or so at home to have the baby. And Carlos would fly in as well to be with me to have the baby. That is the ideal plan, the way i would want things...so please be praying specifically for the Visa. I'll let you know the exact date when we know. THANKYOU!

Emotionally and physically things have been great in the last few months. God has just covered me peace about how things are and where things are. THANKFULLY! Carlos has been great in the new house, bleaching the bathrooms for me, cooking, doing laundry...I think he's excited to have a "bachelor's pad" for a few months until i come back in June. We've been able to talk everyday since i've been home through a wonderful program called Skype on the computer...I miss him, but i'm so glad to be home for a while. Everything is healthy and normal with the baby too, I just started to feel it move- only from the inside- but WOW, its so amazing to think that there really is something alive inside of me...how I already love the little one, love our "conversations", and can't wait (well, for a few more months...) to see what it looks like!

WHEW...i think i've covered all the details...if you have any questions let me know, AND i'm home so maybe I'll run into you! I'd love it! Hope this helps explain where I'm at and how things are...love you all!

Tashina

The addition

Hello once again. I thought I would post every one on the addition. So he's some Pic. It was to great my brothers came out to help and Bub was there with the boys and lindy stopped by with izzy. it was great PARTY AT My house I love it.any who WE were BLESSED and are blessed. love to all the Eisens

Jennifer's update

Hey everybody,

Thanks for your patience. I know there have been many of you to connect with me wondering when the next installment was coming. Here it is...and fraught with miracles and waiting...sometimes not-so-patiently.

Well, God made a way for me to stay in San Diego. I was very open to leaving, in fact my room had been packed for a month (out of a conviction that I was transitioning) and the car had been packed for days as of last Thursday. A few weeks ago, there was a woman I met through a mutual gathering place that mentioned she had a studio for rent. I asked if I could come see it. She said, "Absolutely." I loved it at first sight! The home is located in downtown San Diego...old three story Victorian with generations of history saturating the walls and furniture. Gloria, the 81 year old's name, is pure magic--a violinist, a lover of God, a vivacious and intelligent woman...who is currently kicking my butt in Scrabble. I love it. I love her. The garden on the grounds is San Fran style with potted tress and flowers everywhere. It's totally me for any of you who know how much I love old places and especially old Victorian homes and colorful gardens. I rent the studio in back of the house...and there is an old garage full of tools and old, good things in which I have my art studio.

This past Thursday, I almost didn't get the place... I was packed and ready to go. I still had not heard from the Holy Spirit about where to go or what to do, but had heard through many praying for me to "wait." I had no idea if that was a physiological waiting or a spiritual waiting. So, I prayed on Thursday morning around 3 am...and not without some serious tears... "Lord, if you want me to stay in SD, then I am asking that the studio with Gloria will be available. If you want me to leave, then please have the impossible happen and have someone within the past 48 hours rent it." Well, I called, and Gloria was beside herself. "Jennifer, I tried to call you over and over, but it was always busy. (She didn't dial my area code.) I didn't think it was possible, and I told you I'd wait for your decision until Friday, but 12 hours ago a woman came and looked at the studio and wanted it. So, I gave it to her. I'm so sorry." I told her it was ok...and trusted that I was supposed to leave. Then, at 10 pm that same night, she calls again and said, "Jennifer, you'll never believe this...but that woman called back just now and said she DIDN'T want the studio. Do you still want it?" I told her I would be there at 10 am the next morning.

The studio is the most beautiful home I've had in 3 years...in fact it is the only home I've had to myself in that amount of time. I have slept better here than I have in 3 years. Gloria prays, and I can feel that on the property. Jesus knew what I needed. She loves me, and amazingly she calls me her blessing from Jehovah... I've become her muscle, a property manager and her technical wizard (I just set up a home network for her property and tenants, got her internet, and bidding on laptops for her...she still is actively playing violin in the area...she's been self employed for 22 years.) We both are happy, creative and energetic. We have the BEST conversations. She's teaching me Spanish and Italian... She's Italian...married Spanish. Lovely teacher. Delightful person. Sometimes I think I was born in the wrong era... :)

The amazing thing in all of this is that I contacted over 30 different rental opportunities in the past two months...and NO one, NOT ONE called or emailed me back. Gloria was an open door...strangely, she has a million doors in her house... The house has three storeys and is about 5000 sq ft. She hates to have to walk everywhere to get to another room, so almost every room has 3 or 4 doors. There are even more spare doors in her garage...antique doors, shutters, saloon doors, anything you can imagine. It's crazy. She likes collecting them. Hahha! For all of you who had heard from the Holy Spirit about the coming of an open door. She is the lady of doors.

I've been self employed for the past few months. The contracts keep coming in from strange places, but I'm still looking for full time work. I will be designing a web site, writing, designing marketing collateral and managing some of Gloria's properties... We should be able to work out a barter for a while...but a stable income would be nice...so keep praying all of you, my beloved peoples...

Thanks so much for reading. I genuinely appreciate your love, your interest and care.

Come see me. There's a spare bedroom...and the beach is only a ten minute drive over the Coronado bridge...

Tons of love to all.

j

I need to see a new post (even if it is my own stuff!)

Aunt Renee here and after clicking on the blog a zillion times these past couple days and there were no new posts, I decided that I should just do my own since maybe you are thinking the same thing! I just returned from Spanish II where I need a grande Panera coffee before I go just to be able to keep up! Between I like, she likes, they like and he has, she has, they have, my brain is swimming by the time I'm done (I don't want to even hear about how easy it all is my young spanish nieces . . . . )

Here is a picture that I took of my very cool Junior Achievement bag that I received about 4 weeks ago. I've been teaching JA to 3rd graders at East Elementary in Grandville and THEY ARE BRILLIANT. The 5 weeks is about city planning. . . zones, business, consumers, producers and entrepreneurs! This week is spring break but next week is the last class and it will be about banking and keeping a checkbook ledger (obviously, they did not check out my qualifications for teaching that subject!) but I have loved it! They crack me up because they ask me things like 'do you wear the same clothes every day like a uniform?' (not a ton of variety in the ol' funeral home dress code :))

I don't know about you but I don't think I could even say entrepreneur (I still can't spell it without copying it from the book) in 3rd grade let alone learn about city planning and what goes in what zone. A couple of weeks ago was about starting a restaurant and all that is involved so I brought Rainbow Grill bran muffins because what says Grandville more than those bran muffins. Uncle David thought that was a bad idea since what 3rd graders wants/likes/needs bran but they liked their little quarter of a muffin. One little girl kept asking what the 'flavor' was. . . she didn't get that 'bran' was a flavor! Her teacher told her to just eat it, she would appreciate it when she was older!

Anyway, I so hope I get to keep my bag because it is so fun, just like the past 5 weeks.

The latest news

Well Hi there so everyone knows we are BACK !!!, Gramps

here. we went to Florida for the month of Feb. stayed in

Venice, Had a fine time, got home about hte 3rd of March

Took two weeks to read all our mail and the B B. (thats

blessed blog) . Started packing for a trip to Tenn. went

to the Grand ole Opry, stayed two nights in the VERY PLUSH

Ryman Hotel, with our Driver and his wife Barbara Grace,

then went to Dr. Vander Veens residence for two nights and

enjoyed our Family, Kids, Grandkids, & Great grandkids.

Then returned to our Wonderful Home to see the Flowers in

bloom Daffidills, crocus (sp) and green grass.

What a WORLD !!! We leave again in May for a trip to

lancaster Penn. with Dick & Dolores Moore to see the

Stage productions , by Bus a real old folks vacation.

Love and Prayers Gramps & Gramma T.B. O.G.I.G.

hello again,
So last week was awesome out. so Jason and I decided to take the Harley out for a drive. It so nice. We start on our house this weekend, Andy is coming over to dig the hole for us. Praise God we're starting. Last week i woke up to Eli holding a waffle in my face saying he was hungery at 6:30 in the morn'n. I told him he was not aloud to go in the fridge without asking when i was sleeping. anywho i got made him breakfast, he said he was sorry. Then he says " I was brave though" crack me up. He comes up with some funny sayings some times. So he's turning 4 in May Lily is 7 months now saying daaa daaa to which Jason loves. But i do have one question to the moms: we have been going through some rough times with eli. Everytime we say something he does not like or want to do he start crying and throwing a fit. Or when it's time to go to bed it's always I"m not tired i don't want to and the crying agian.? Any suggestions that would be wonderful. I don't know if there's something were not giving him that he's needing maybe i don't know. But i am at the end of my rope with how to handle it. love to all and happy trails.
audrey

A New Goal Accomplished... Almost

Today I am busy but craving adult conversation. So I thought I would post a blog about my latest endeavor in the athletic realm. I love setting new workout goals and pushing myself past my limits. Last summer I trained for a minitriathlon. It was a mini, mini but was challenging me. I had a fear of water and had a tough time swimming out to the diving dock at the cottage. (I know... pathetic!) So I swam 300 yds, biked 6 miles, and ran 3 miles. It was really fun. This winter I was looking for another challenge. Thanks to a convincing sister, I decided to train for the 5th, 3rd Run in May. They have a 25K run which is around 15 miles. I ran track in high school and even in college a bit but I WAS A SPRINTER. That means that anything over a mile is LONG distance to us. The 3 mile run for my minitri was tough enough. So this was a huge goal. I committed to training for it but have waited to actually make the commitment to run it. This is mostly due to the time commitment it takes to actually train for the long runs. Well, yesterday I ran 10 miles. I was so proud of myself. I actually teared up a bit! It is funny when you accomplish something that you realize you didn't actually believe you could do. I had hoped I could push myself enough to do it but I guess deep down I had some serious doubts. I am really sore today but it was SO worth it. So now I am announcing to the world that I am going to run the entire race... the whole 15 miles. I am pretty excited and really enjoyed my run yesterday. I am at the point now where I can run 3-5 miles and it is fun. That is pretty sweet. Just thought I would add another interesting realm to the blogging world. Hope everyone is having a wonderful day! Adios!

~Jen

Springtails

Here's the lastest bug we've discovered up here in Traverse City....after talking to a very nice gentleman at Colliers Pest Control we're a little more at ease. He said they're called springtails or snow fleas but I prefer springtails! We found these little black 'specks' in our basement around the door leading outside and then on Monday when the weather was fabulous we were horrified to find them COVERING the foundation of our house. Kinda like a pile of ants that once you crouch down and really start looking they're EVERYWHERE.....EEWWW!!! I did some research online just now and found out that they're probably found in your backyard too! (see we don't get all the nasty critters!) Here's a short blerp on what I found...ya never know folks, this could be one of those 'useless facts' that might just come in handy some day! Luke you might actually enjoy this one!

Here goes:

Most of us have never noticed snow fleas, unique little creatures that are really very common, and right under our noses. Here's how to find them.
On a warm, sunny winter day, take a look at the base of a tree where the snow may have melted down to expose some leaves, or where the snow is shallow or hollowed out just a bit. There you'll find a sprinkling of what looks like "pepper" or "ashes" on the surface of the snow. Snow fleas are actually tiny insects which come out on warm, sunny days to eat decayed plant material or sap oozing from the tree. They hop around acting like fleas and that's where they get their name, snow "fleas." They're not fleas though, but actually an arthropod called Collembola (kol-LEM-bo-la) or commonly called springtails which measure about 1/8 inch (2mm) long.