Matthew golfing in States!!!!

Golf ... the one man sport that Mike loves and put Matthew into it six years ago!  Matthew likes golf but doesn't love it.  But he's good at it!  Matthew would rather have a team that rallies together and has locker room fun and a team spirit that can help play the game.  Well, golf is you and you only!  If you mess up on one hole, you hold up your head and try your best on the next round!

Matthew golfs with PV and had the same coach all six years!  He has grown a lot!  He practiced and worked hard at many matches, many hours of putting the ball around and so many people that watch him golf say he has a nice swing!  He can drive a ball far!  Many tears have been shed with golf when a golf friend died and was buried a few years ago from bad choices he made.  Many victories were won too and that's how Matthew got to States this week!

Mike, Matthew and Coach Clair left for Penn State on Sunday morning and Matthew had a practice round.  They stayed there the next two days and I decided to take that 2 1/2 hour drive on Tuesday and go watch Matthew golf!  It's his very last golf competition in high school and I knew this is an honor and privilege  to get this far in the sport!  Golf is tough and a hard game to play!

I jammed out on worship songs the entire way there!  I was in awe at the leaves and all the beauty of autumn!  I didn't know that the trees were at their peek and it was just stunning and totally awesome to drive the highways with so much color all around me!

What an honor to arrive here!

It was so good to be with Mike again!  He bought me a few packs of hand warmers and that saved the day because I didn't realize it was that cold out there!  We walked the whole golf course with Matthew and got an 8 mile exercise in!  I loved it!

Grabbed us some coffee to keep us warm too!

The entire day, we were surrounded by the most colorful trees and landscape!  I just couldn't get over it!  I love autumn time and this was gorgeous!

Matthew played well!  Monday, he golfed an 82 and placed 41st out of 108 golfers.  Tuesday, we golfed a 81 and came in at 39th place against 72 state wide golfers.  He played well with all these layers.  Typically golf is a warm weather sport.  Today he had hand warmers in each pocket and one stuck in his beanie and wore new, too short golf pants instead of shorts.  😂. 

One of the golfers moms came up to me and said Matthew has a great swing!  I laughed and told her he doesn't get it from me!  It really was so much fun following him from hole to hole and taking in all the beauty of God's creation!

A few of the guys in Matthew's class came to watch him play on Tuesday!  He loved that!

Coach was riding on a cart and helping with the tournament!

Sometimes I wonder if our children realize how blessed they are to go to a Christian Private School that offers so many good sports!  Sports have really changed our schedules and sometimes its a crazy schedule for a bit but we love it!  It's so worth watching our children thrive and compete and do so well!

Matthew finished up his last golf round with his dad watching closely!  It means so much to me how Mike and Matthew hang out and love this sport and learn together!  We are so proud of you Matthew!

A very proud moment!!!!  Thank you Coach Clair for all that you poured into Matthew's golf life!  What a blessing you are to so many!

I loved every bit of watching Matthew golf!  Mike and I walked side by side and took in the beauty and cheered Matthew on!  Good job Matt!

This completes Matthew's golf season for high school.  I'm sure he will be golfing with his dad lots more but he's now ready to move on to basketball!  Look out ... the boys are going to play with all their might and it's going to be a joy ride!!!!

Love you, Matt!

Fish Fry!

 We had such a great time with our church family last weekend!  Steve Fisher planned a fishing day and then a fish fry on Saturday!  I was sure to have Mike add our family to this event because Matthew and Austin love to fish!

Well, when it came down to actually go fish, it was Mike, Ashlyn and Austin.  I met them there later and everyone caught lots of fish and had a blast!

Our church family is becoming more and more dear to us!!!  There are so many people that LOVE THE LORD and serve and it's just a blessing to enjoy church and learn of God and then have fish fries!!!!

Getting those hooks out ...

The fish got weighed ...

... and then filleted. 

And then fried!!!!!  

Ruth added French fries, baked beans, coleslaw and tartar sauce!  Then there was pies and s'mores for dessert!  The Fisher's got it all for us to enjoy and it was delicious!  Thank you!!!!

The evening was so nice to eat outside and sit around the campfire!

We are blessed to be a part of Honeybrook Community Church!

October fun, food and events.

 

Last Monday, I went to listen to a lady share her story and testimony of many years ago she grew up in Germany during the World War 2 and witnessed lots of unrest.  Her story was amazing and she shared how before she even knew that there was a God that loved her, she just knew it!  She felt it.  She knew someone was watching over her through the war days, the days of bombing, traveling alone at 13 back to America and so on!  She challenged us to read OUT LOUD the entire book of Philippians EVERY DAY for 30 DAYS.  Philippians is a letter that Paul wrote to the church and it's been incredible to read through this book!  Do it with me!!!!  It's only four chapters long!  Sit down and read it out loud from start to finish!

We got invited to INSPIRE at Sight and Sound and it was incredible!  They had a worship time where I found myself crying through the song Goodness of God again.  This song speaks to me and moves me every time I sing it!  Then we watched the David show!  I love events like this with Mike by my side!

We are blessed with so many yummy cafe's and restaurants around us!  New Holland Crepes opened up the other week and it was great to meet Suz here!  We ate good crepes and caught up with life!  

And then it was grape juice day!  I ordered 10 gallons and canned it!

We had so many days of rain and we finally have the sun shining again!  I think of those in Florida that got slammed by Hurricane Ida and Fort Myers is a mess!  I'm so grateful that we dry again here!  Going for a daily morning walk with my friend Linda is such a good decision!  I love walking with a friend!  

And eating lunch on the front porch, soaking up the sunshine and eating soup is so good for my soul!  Frost will be here soon and so these warmer autumn days are the best!  

We are still picking food from the garden.  Last week I pulled out the rest of the beats and cooked them and then added butter and salt!  So good!  Jalapeños are still plentiful and I stuffed them with cream cheese spread and cooked them on the grill!

I am picking lots of lettuce too!  My favorite by far!

Last year, I planted a red butter crunch lettuce in the fall but I couldn't find it in the greenhouses this time.  Instead I planted the lettuce "Ruby" and it's also really good!  We have mini romaine and regular butter crunch lettuce ready to harvest soon!

The kids made a scarecrow in the garden the other day.  It might keep the birds away! 😃

Matthew is still doing well with golf!  He competed over the weekend and is going now to States!  Way to go Matthew and couch Galen!

Austin and I made a stop at the Farmhouse Market event.  Ashlyn was there too but was with Meleah!  These fall events are fun to attend!  We ate yummy burgers and fries and strolled the shops and came home.

And here's a first ... we were told that the golf team was going to be honored at the local football game, so we went and invited Hunter and Adrian along.  It was a chilly game and even though the golf team didn't have their moment after all at the game, it was our first PV game we attended.

The rest of October is packed full of many volleyball games for Ashlyn, more golf for Matthew and lots of Arise Collective / Pilgrim shows to help with!  It's going to be busy but a blessing and hopefully soul changing for many!!!

Have a great week!