The countdown to Peru continues. As we get closer to leaving- the more out of control I feel. I find myself feeling scattered and lost throughout the days- and am reminded that God is drawing me closer to Him as I "detach" from things here. I have been a bit lonely at times. Not knowing who to call-or even what to say if I did call. Again, a chance to draw near to God.

Chad and I have both been impressed with the idea of intention in the last few weeks. There is an intention (known or unknown to us) behind everything we do. We should know and choose the intentions by which we live. The fact is, we are going to keep living and making choices every moment of our day whether we do things "on purpose" or not. If we are not being intentional and disciplined in our lives Satan is able to creep in with little lies, and eventually can seriously distort the way we see ourselves, others and even God. We must stay sharp.

We have tentatively scheduled a few informal gatherings to talk about Peru. One in Nampa, one in Boise and an update/goodbye gathering in Hailey. Our current pledged total is $43,000. Chad and I are both staying busy with work, and are doing all we can to build up our savings to take care of expenses that we will still have here, while we are in Peru.

It is raining hard here this morning. Chad and Ella are out on a date- to the donut shop. Thomas is enthralled with morning t.v., which rarely happens at our house. Last night was not a good one for our family. Cranky kid- cranky parents, etc, etc. The peace and calm of this morning are appreciated. Ella and Chad came home while I was writing this, with donuts to share. Ella wanted to bring donuts back so we could all eat them together.

This is Ella after I had her go find clothes that matched. She came out, not matching, but wearing a "pattern", stripes-dots-stripes. Good enough.

Thomas, the bear, in his cave.

Chad introduced our kids to the face-taping game. I think he may have had more fun than they did.