Two funerals in one week.

 Mike and I love to attend Sight N Sounds Inspire event!  It's by invitation only and we are honored to be there the other week.  We started with worship surrounded by many pastors and business leaders from our near by towns!  Then we watched the Noah show.  Finished with a boxed meal and it was so, so good to be there!

I'm reminded again that this world is not my home.  With Mommy D. passing in September.  Then our friend Dave Fisher passed away.  Both of these older folks I visited often and loved them.  Then we got the news after our wonderful fishing night with our church friends, that Dorothy Stoltzfus was in an accident.  She's a youth girl from our church.  Her family was taking family photos that night and afterwards she went with friends and was in a car accident.  We prayed as soon as we got the message but it wasn't real long after that that we got the news Dorothy passed away.  The wounds were too severe for her to survive.  

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Daves viewing and funeral arrangements were made.  The Fishers asked if Mike and I could prepare a small meal for them after the viewing and we asked Matt and Lena to help us!  We were honored to do this in memory of Dave!

Daves viewing was on Sunday.  We served sandwiches and soup on Sunday night to Daves close family and then the funeral was on Monday.  Dave would be very proud of such an honoring service!  Dave was never married.  Had no children of his own but loved by many!!!!!  Dave loved Jesus!  He was our friend!

We gathered in the rain as Dave's body was laid to rest.

Then on Tuesday we attended Dorothys viewing and the funeral on Wednesday.  

This is heartbreaking news!!!!  Losing a loved one at only 21 years old seems too young!  Dorothy was a sweet girl!  A very sweet girl that loved Jesus and told her friends about the Savior she loved!  Young people in her life were turned to Jesus because of her influence!

Dorothy's family comes to our church.  Levi and Nancy will need our prayers as they greive, miss their girl and start a new life without her.  Caleb and Hosanna will miss their big sister!  Cousins and fiends and relatives and coworkers .... everyone that knew Dorothy will miss her a lot!

It seems like we've been to too much viewings and funerals that past few weeks but we trust that God above knows best!

I was asked to capture some funeral memories and it just breaks my heart to see another family in our congregation going through such loose!  Jesus please be near them!!!!!

The holidays are coming and we are taking advantage of some online sales and making some lists for Christmas!  We cannot wait to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year, when Jesus came to this world to save us from our sins!  We call it Christmas!

It's been a week of tears.  It's also the first of frost on our land.  The cold weather is coming.  I loved the art work that Austin did at school this week too!  The leaves are slowly changing their colors and I'm so excited to see the beauty!

The little buddy!  And we cheered for the Phillies all summer long and now their season comes to an end.

Mike set up the crib that all our babies used!  This is for Gunnar now when he's here for his naps!

It felt refreshing (and busy) to attend another event on Saturday night but the PA Family Institute has a very good thing going and we were honored to be invited and a part of this special night!

It felt so refreshing to see the sunlight and walk at the park again after so many tears this week.

GOD IS SO GOOD!

Fishing with church friends!

Our church had a fishing night and then fried up the fish we caught!  Austin loves to fish, so he was excited to be there!  He did have a fall ball practice to go to but that got canceled because of wet fields.  He likes baseball but he was happy to stay and fish all night long.  He fished till dark!

 

Steve and Ruth and Dean and Roseanna cooked up the food and we had a delicious supper!

Fishing and friends = the best night!

This was a little boys dream!

In memory of Mommy D.

Gunnar is our sweet grandson! He is 6 months old and sitting!  He's the happiest little guy and we love when he comes to our home!  We babysit while his momma coaches Ashlyn's volleyball team.  It's been working so well!  He came ready to cheer for the Chiefs and we were happy for that too!!!!!

 

Cute little friends!!!!!

All things pumpkin and the house smells amazing after baking these muffins!  And we grabbed some Linden fall drinks!  The girls love these!

I baked the muffins for a gathering with these friends.  Anne had my mom and Ruth and a few of Annies girls for a brunch.  Jody and I were there too!  It was so sweet to talk about Mommy D and her sister Annie!  Both of these ladies passed away now and what a great legacy they left behind!

Such gorgeous dahlias I'm enjoying from a lady that lives in town and grows these!  And my favorite fall candle is lit once again!  Honeycrisp Apple from Candle Chemistry!

October.

October is here.  It's the month of color!!!!  I can't wait to watch the leaves turn from green to reds and oranges and yellows!  These months are flying by in 2025 and I just know that this month will be the same.  We've got cabin trips on our mind!  Hunting season begins!  Our weekends are full of activities and it's gonna be so fun to watch the volleyball team move on to finals and districts and hopefully to states!!!!  This month we turn on the floor heat and grab for our warm jackets!  The garden is finishing up and the dahlias are gorgeous!

Welcome lovely October!!!!!

 

The sunlight is so beautiful as we walk the park paths!

The New Holland Parade is a highlight for us each fall!  We walk the streets to find our favorite waffle and ice cream sandwiches!  Austin always loves the games.  The fish he was given last year is still alive today.

Mommy Lapp joined us and we showed her what the fair and parade life is all about!

We sat along the street as the parade went by!  The load trucks and bag pipers were fun and the candy we collected still lays in Austin's bedroom.  Gunnar liked it.  We were chilly and reminded to wear warm clothes for the parade!  Ashlyn was there too but of course she was sitting with Meg and Mel!  Matthew and Daisy came on the motorcycle but we took their chairs back for them after the parade!

Our favorite Gingerbread Biscottis!!!!!

It seems like so many loved ones are dying and going to be with Jesus!  Here are a few we know and don't know but they were all ambassadors for Jesus!

I pulled out the flowers in the garden and now we have all these zinna seeds coming up!  And tons of peppers were picked off the plants!  It's time to clean out the garden before frost comes!

We laughed out way to the cabin!  There were lots of great food trucks at County Lane and Mike suggested we get dinner here before driving to the girls volleyball game and then going straight to the cabin from there!  The lobster rolls were delicious and expensive!!!!!  We licked the Nooners Italian Ice as we drove so it wouldn't melt before our main meal was eaten.  Mike decided to wait to eat his loaded hot dog from Drifters until after the game but after the game, we couldn't find it.  It must have gotten thrown out when we cleaned out the trash!

The girls played great and won another match!

We got the cabin at 1 AM on Saturday morning.  We were tired but we listened to Charlie and Erika Kirk speak as we drove in the dark.  The goal for this cabin trip was to help Dad with the pickle ball court and the boys to hunt!!!!

Putting up the huge light poles was quiet the job!

Lines were painted on the court!

Mike took Austin hunting and he used Ritchies cross bow.  They saw deer and even some bucks but couldn't get a shot.

All these cabin trips are so much fun!  The kids play, hunt, ride toys and spend time with family!

October ... we can't wait to watch you turn into beauty!