The Comfort of Praying Friends

Last night we heard some news that we have been dreading since September. We heard that Mr. Cliff Jenkin, one of Mikayla's teachers at DCA, is no longer able to receive treatment for the rare form of cancer that he has been fighting for years. He has been given only weeks to live and hospice care is now his only option. He is a young man, and well loved among the students of DCA.
At times like this I am always comforted and encouraged by the promises of dear friends to pray. God is sovereign. We know that He holds Cliff and his wife, Megan, in the palm of His almighty hand. But, we in our humanness are still hurting. Mikayla and the rest of the students, though they knew this day would come, are hurting. We need your prayers for wisdom. How do you comfort and counsel a teenager who is having to deal with this sort of thing? We only just got to know Mr Jenkin and have been impressed but his unflagging faithfulness in his teaching, but Mikayla has spent everyday with him and come to love and respect him greatly. He has been a Godly example to his students and they will miss him. Please pray for Cliff and Megan Jenkin, their family, and Dublin Christian Academy during this time.

Rebellion

That's right. I am rebelling! It snowed over 6 inches here yesterday. So, I am rebelling by posting a springy background on my blog. Isn't that better? Seriously, by mid-March we should at least be seeing the ground, brown and muddy though it may be. Maybe we were spoiled last week when we had warmer temps that made the snow melt and the ice break up on lakes and rivers. On top of that, friends of mine spotted robins in their yard AND the receptionist at cancer care had pussy willows on her desk AND they gave us daffodils on the way out the door. The daffodils bloomed beautifully in their place of honor in the center of my kitchen table. Then, SNOW!

Blog Worthy

Well, I went and looked at my blog today having not remembered the last time that I had sat down to update it, and it looked back at me with a forlorn, pained expression. Then it said, "Don't you care a fig about me anymore? Do you care one wit that I am stuck here at Christmas?" Ok, so the thing is, I have trouble determining what is blog worthy and what isn't. I mean life can get really hum-drum around here and I'm just not sure that anyone is that interested. But since the blog itself is complaining, here are a few updates about life at Upcott Manor.

Church Happenings

Our Gospel Club for kids age 5-12 is going very well this year. we average about 20 kids. A big group for us! Terry is an awesome storyteller for kids this age, and we also do games, crafts, and a snack. One day, we called all the parents and asked them to dress the kids for playing outdoors. Then we had a snowman building relay. So much fun that they wanted to do it again the next week.

All Work and No Play...

All work and no play makes Jen go insane. So, I was blessed to be able to attend a Ladies Retreat hosted by West Hampton Baptist Church. Isn't this a beautiful resort!? It was beautiful, and we had a great time of fellowship together as a blizzard blew outside.

Nate has been going skiing with the Jr. High this winter. I took Lanie and tried to teach her as well, and we had a great time on the slopes several times this year.

View from the top of Mt. Jefferson.

The Bunny Slope

Nathanael and Terry's Birthday

To celebrate Nate and Terry's birthday this year, I really wanted us all to be together. I was missing my girl. So, off we went for a weekend in New Hampshire. We went to church together, went out to eat at Applebees, and spent a day tubing at Granite Gorge. This was a little early in the month, so on Nate's actual birthday he was surprised to find a few more gifts when he got home from band that morning. A cake that he had been drowling over at Tim Horton's was a hit, too! And apparantly, at age 14, you are still not too big for legos.

Mikayla is going to hate me for posting this, but she would not stand and let me get a good pic, so her friend Jessany held her for me. haha. We had a good time! and Jess is a sweetie!

Lanie and Nathanael found that it was a faster ride when you go together....

...so, Papa enjoyed doing it that way, too.

They had this really cool conveyor belt to ride to the top on.