A Fun Afternoon

Elmise and Armon came to visit this afternoon with their mom. Jessica. What a fun time we had!

Elmise came as a princess! See her tiara, jewels, and skirt.

Armon is playing with the match box cars and trucks that were Papa Rob's when he was a little boy!

These monkeys were also Papa's when he was a little boy!

Elmise found a kazoo in the box of toys. She started playing it immediately! Not just making noise...she was humming tunes! This Is The Day That The Lord Has Made; Swing Low, Sweet Chariot; Come and Go With Me To My Father's House, and more! Jerry started singing Come and Go With Me in Creole...she looked at him in surprise and started singing along with him! Then she sang the rest of the verses! She has a lovely voice!

The house quickly became a mess today but who cares! We all had fun! The Fisher-Price school house and play house were Aunt Christy's when she was a little girl!

Oh Heavenly Father how I praise You! Thank You, thank You, thank You for these precious children. Please help them as they make all the adjustments. Thank You for bringing them to our family. Help me to be a good grandma to them and to the rest of our grandchildren.

Plaid

Here's Plaid waiting to go home. I took this shot in December, you can see bells hanging on the door knob. But this is how he watched for his family! He went home yesterday...I miss him. I hope he and Elmise and Armon can adjust to each other.

Lord, thank You for pets. Thank You for Plaid. Please help the children and Plaid to adjust to each other.

New Grandchildren

Here they are....our new grandchildren! In the picture is: Plaid, Elmise, Grandma, Armon, & Grandpa. Elmise was trying to hold Plaid down so she doesn't have her beautiful smile.
They were introduced today at church. They had to go up on the platform in front of everyone. Rob & Jessica & Haleigh were with them. Pastor Dave had Rob tell a little bit about how things are going. Rob did well even though he got choked up a few times.
Pastor Dave prayed for the whole family in their new life together. It was touching.
Rob, Haleigh, Elmise, and Armon came over this afternoon and took Plaid home with them. I could tell Rob had talked to the kids about taking him home. They seemed to be okay with it.
Lord, thank You for Elmise, Armon, Plaid, Rob's original family, and our church family.

Senior Luncheon - Prime Timer's Luncheon

Today 38 folks met for a pot luck dinner after 2nd service. This first picture shows some younger guys! They provided us with entertainment! They are all International exchange students.

Fernando from Spain played the bag pipes! James from Thailand played a Thai flute! Next is Michele, the boys host mother. Jooman from Korea played oboe!

James playing his Thai flute.

Jooman playing his oboe.

Fernando from Spain playing his bag pipes!

Larry and Jerry relaxing and visiting.

Joanne, Jane, Herb, Marci, Richard, and Dave.

Heavenly Father, I praise You because You are Sovereign. You are love. You love each one of us enough to die for us.

Armon, Elmise, and Plaid

Okay, yes, we'll keep Plaid for another day or two!!! Armon, Rob, and Plaid. Poor Plaid.

Plaid, Haleigh, and Elmise. She loves Plaid, but would rather he stay at Grandma's house!

Lord, I'm coming to You on behalf of Plaid. He's such a sweet little dog. He belongs to Rob's family. Please help Armon and Elmise to adjust to life here. Help them both as they encounter new experiences. Thank You for this challenge that is before us.

First Popsicles!

I know it's cold weather and popsicles aren't the most popular treat now but I was trying to think of something I could give them besides candy for a little treat at grandma's house. They loved them!
Haleigh and Elmise.

Rob & Armon.

Lord, thank You for little blessings.

Who is King?

We've been keeping Plaid, Rob's families dog, while they've been gone. He does get his own way, I'll admit. But this is going too far!!!
Everyone knows Jerry has his own chair. Anyone can sit in it but if Jerry walks into the room the chair is vacated and Jerry sits down!
Today I came home and found Jerry sitting in the wing chair...Plaid is sitting in Jerry's chair! I laughed and laughed!
Dear Lord, thank You for life, for pets, for home, for comforts of home. Thank You for laughter.

Home at Last

Finally at home in Michigan. Armon and Elmise saw their first snow and even played in it! Here's the whole family of six! Tyler, Jessica, Elmise, Haleigh, Armon, & Rob.

Elmise with a pretty smile!

Armon is a handsome young boy!

Heavenly Father, thank You for this precious family.

At MBS

Here we are at MBS. Their plane even arrived early! A few close friends and family were there to greet them. Kelby and Elmise. She's busy coloring.

Jessica and Rob being interviewed by MDN. The reporter wanted to follow them home but they said no. We want to just be our family at home. I'm proud of them for that. I'm also anxious to read the newspaper tomorrow!

Rob finally leaving MBS.

Armon was glued to Tyler!

Jerry and Rob.

Lord, thank You for the safety with all the flying. We have so much to thankful for. I praise You.

Before They Arrived Home Jan 2010

Today was a huge day in the life of Rob & Jessica and their family. A few of us had a lot of fun doing some special things for them.
I've added a picture of the garage with streamers to the original post because I thought maybe you could see the streamers better here. Click on the picture.
Kelby and Jon are responsible for all the stuff on the cupboards. Here the cupboards are loaded with purchases. I wonder where it's going to be stored!?

The back porch with streamers, done by Amy and Shana.

Balloons and banners welcome the Archer family home.


The banner was made by Jamie.

These colorful chains were put across the kid's bedroom doors. This is looking into Armon's room.

Inside Armon's room.

In Elmise's room.

Driving in the driveway the first thing they saw was the garage with balloons and crape paper strung across the doors. It's hard to see it here, but if you click on the pictue you can see it.

Lord, what a wonderful day You have given us.

Grandchildren

I'm now the proud grandma of 13 +1+1 equals 15 grandchildren!
Andrew...Matthew...Kaleb...Tyler...Annie...Max...Megan...Haleigh...Miller...Sydney...Elmise... Isabella...Mason...Armon...Madelyn!
Hopefully we can get a group picture of them all at a family gathering.
The next one I know about is Andrew's wedding! He's marrying Katie in June!

Lord, grandchildren are a gift from You. How I thank You for mine!
I love them and You love them even more!

Elmise and Armon

We are so excited! Rob, Jessica, Tyler, and Haleigh are flying to Florida today to get Elmise and Armon, who are flying from Haiti today! The government stepped in and is granting families who were so close to finalizing adoptions to just simply take their kids home! Rob's family is being flown to Florida by Dow, in a private jet! Amazing! We are so excited! I can't even imagine how Rob's family is feeling! We're keeping Plaid (dog) for them. They plan to stay in Florida for a few days to adjust to being a forever family before they come to Michigan.

Heavenly Father, how I praise You! This is so amazing to me but to You...it was already in the plan! Thank You. Please keep them safe in their traveling. I love You, Father.

Official Conformation

With profound sadness, Free Methodist World Missions reports Rev. Jeanne, Merle, and Gene, the three missionaries who have been unaccounted for, have not been located and are now presumed to not be alive. Today Bishop David Roller conducted a funeral service at the site of the building they were in which collapsed when Tuesday's earthquake hit. These three individuals gave their lives in service to the Haitian people whom they loved deeply.

Merle had been ministering in Haiti since 1978. He served as president of FOHO (Friends of Haiti Organization) and supervised construction of the new FOHO building. Merle was active in Craftsman for Christ and worked construction in the Miami Haitian churches. He also took three trips to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

Gene had been on three trips to Haiti and one to Africa . Gene, along with Merle, was active in Craftsman for Christ and worked construction in the Miami Haitian churches. Gene and Merle were good friends, enjoying each other's company and sharing a heart and love for Haiti .

Merle and Gene were both friends of ours. It's so sad and unbelievable. There will be memorial services in Florida, Jan 19, and in Michigan, Jan 30.

Heavenly Father, You are Sovereign, You are love, You are All Knowing. I don't understand this, but I praise You and I trust You. Please be with the families of these three that are lost. You know where their bodies are. They are not hidden to You. There are so many others who are lost and hurting. This is such a tragedy. Please, wrap your arms around these hurting people.

Website

This is the website you can log on to to see Jessica on the news! I just thought my family and friends might like to see it.

http://www.wnem.com/video/22247002/index.html

Thank You Lord for caring media. Please work a miracle here and bring our grandkids home.

Becoming a Citizen

Three friends, Dianne, Donna, and Rose, and I all went to Detroit today. Dianne was scheduled to take her test to become a US citizen. She passed! We'll go back down Jan 29 for the swearing in.

This picture shows Donna quizzing Dianne from the booklet of questions she's been studying. Later, I went through the questions again with her. She knew all the answers and she passed the test.

After the testing we went to eat dinner at The Bahama Breeze in Troy. Going around the table is 'yours truly,' Rose, Donna, and Dianne This is a really nice place to eat and celebrate! I had Mahi Mahi. It was delicious!

Lord, thank You for friends. Thank You for Dianne's desire to be an American citizen. Thank You for helping her to be calm and to remember the answers she had studied so hard.

Haiti

This map shows Haiti and where it is situated in relation to the U.S.A. An earthquake, 7.0, hit Port-au-Prince, the capital city, yesterday, creating devastation to millions of people. My heart is aching for them. Click on the picture to enlarge it.

This is Rob and Elmise. Elmise and Armon are being adopted by Rob and Jessica. They are safe and are being cared for in this tragic situation in Haiti. They, along with the rest of the orphange children, were led to an open area (field?) and are being kept there. The orphanage building has damage so I'm not sure where they'll be taken to.

Jessica and Armon. The adoption was soon to be finalized and kids could come home...where are the adoption papers now??? Who knows.

This is a close up picture of a map of Haiti. The earthquake, 7.0, hit about 10 miles out of Port-au-Prince, the capitol city. It is a city of houses made from cement blocks, plywood, card board, whatever... Even the President's Palace was badly damaged.

Two friends of ours, Gene and Merle, had just landed in Haiti a couple of hours before the quake hit...they are unaccounted for and also one of our missionaries, Jeanne.

The young man, Hillaire, we sponsored, along with Pam, for years...since he was a baby, is in Port-au-Prince attending school to become a lab technician. We've not had any word on him yet.

Mallery, a young friend of ours, has opened up a school, clinic, etc. is devastated and is planning to go back down tomorrow. Where will she stay, etc? At least one of her little children has died in this quake. Mallery's heart is in Haiti, she was planning on moving there permanently in May.
I could go on telling more about folks we know and love in Haiti.

Dear Lord, I praise You because You are Omnipresent. You are All Knowing. You are Power. I ask that You please take care of these beautiful people. Wrap Your arms around them. Please be with Armon and Elmise. Keep them safe and well. Please be with Gene and Merle and Jeanne. Help them to be found safe. Please be with Hillaire. Keep him safe and well. Lord, what about the adoption papers? You know where they are in all the rubble. Please keep them intact and help the adoption to move forward and soon.
Lord, all of these I've written about know You personally and I thank You for that. There are thousands of others who don't know You. Please send Your Love along with relief to these folks who are so desperately in need. I love the Haitian people but You love them even more. You sent Your Son to die for them.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Jerry! I love you! I wish for you a wonderful day today and everyday! You're a good husband, father, friend, etc. I can't imagine life without you. I can't believe you are 74 years today!

Lord, thank You for Jerry. He's a very good person and husband. He loves You and that's the most important. He also loves me and all our family, and friends. Thank You for loving him...us.

Mother & Kay

My second cousins, Kay and Lucky, went to visit my mother in December. They were in Colorado visiting their daughter's family so they took time to drive to where my mom lives and visit her. I think that was wonderful. Kay and Lucky live in Iowa so...thank you, thank you, thank you! Kay was the granddaughter of Bessie, my dad's oldest sister. Bessie lived to be one hundred and two! So Kay's mother is my cousin, Irma. She is 91. My mother is 95 and will be 96 on March 16. My dad passed away just four days before his 96th birthday. So, you can see, Kay and I have longevity in our genes!
This is a very nice picture of both my mother and Kay. Mother told me about their visit on the phone one day when we were talking. She was so pleased that they would take time to visit her. Kay just e-mailed this picture to me and I wanted to share it with you.
Heavenly Father, thank You for family, and for both my mother and my cousin, Kay. Thank You for allowing Kay and Lucky to visit Mother. Family is so important.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday, Haleigh! Oh my goodness...you're a teenager! I can't believe it! It seems like just yesterday you were a tiny 4# baby girl who was born earlier than we expected! You were beautiful back then and you're beautiful today! You're so full of life and are looking forward to your new brother and sister joining the family soon. You'll be a wonderful big sister! Have a great day today with your friends. Happy, happy birthday!

Lord, thank You for Haleigh. She's a precious daughter to You and granddaughter to me. Please keep Your Hand upon her as she's entering adolescence. This can be a difficult time in a person's life but with You guiding her it can be a great time of learning and serving others and especially You. Guide her and protect her. I love her so much and You love her even more.

Winter scenes

I've had some interesting comments and questions about these two pictures I've used as my header.
The picture with the buggy I took up at Arlington Beach FM Camp, in Saskatchewan, Canada several years ago. We were there in October and there was a huge snow storm! This buggy was sitting in the yard near the main lodge, (for those of you who can picture the camp).
The picture of trees and snow I took yesterday from my front porch looking northwest, (for those of you who can picture my house and yard and woods)!
Lord I praise You because You are the Creator.

New Year's Eve Party 09

Haleigh, Sydney, Bella & I had our 2nd annual New Year's Eve party! From 8 - 10 we watched a movie. Then the party started. First we roasted marshmallows in the wood burning stove in the living room.

They were delicious! Sydney, Bella, & Haleigh.

Then we moved to the sun room where we had snacks and brown cows (root beer floats). We just talked together and told stories. (We didn't get rowdy this year...like last year!) Haleigh with her brown cow.

Sydney with her brown cow.

Things wound down about 11:30 and all three girls went to sleep! I woke them up at 11:57 so they'd be awake to watch the ball drop in New York City! We all wished each other a happy new year and then went to bed! Good Night!
Heavenly Father, once again I praise You because You are All Knowing. Please guide these precious granddaughters as they grow into adolescence and then adulthood.