Before all of the leaves fall off the trees, I thought it would be fun to take the family out for our own photo shoot (thanks to a tripod and wireless studio light). It’s crazy for Marla and I to look at this photos and realize how tall the girls really are getting. Thanks God, for my beautiful family!

We have four months until our family of five leaves the country to spend three weeks in Cambodia. Marla and I spent seven days in Phnom Penh last year with Asia’s Hope (see photos here). We currently have $8,010 saved up, and it looks like we’ll need around $13,000. The girls have sold crafts and stuff in our house, Marla has sold books and had a few speaking engagements, and I have worked on a few websites on the side. We’re thrilled to see how God has allowed us to get this close without directly “asking for money from people.”

And this is where you come in. I am starting to transition to doing more photography (now that I have adequate gear), and I’d like to use those talents to help us reach the goal. I am inviting 10 families, over the course of the next four months, to book a one-hour photo session for $100. You will get to keep all of the digital images, and I will also advise on some printing options if you would like help with that.

Half of the money raised from these sessions ($500) will go toward our goal, and the other half ($500) will go directly toward the work that God is doing through Asia’s Hopeis in Cambodia, Thailand, and soon-to-be India. If interested, message me on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or using the contact form here on my site. I guess you could also leave a comment below – wow.

Let your friends know that they also have the chance to Get Shot and Stop Traffick!

I woke up this morning, and felt the oldest I’ve ever felt. Not because I turned 34 on Thursday, but because our oldest daughter Olivia turned 10 this morning! When she was born, I remember sitting in the recliner by Marla’s bed and crying for maybe a good hour. Probably the longest I’ve ever cried. One of the happiest moments of my entire life!

It feels crazy to be back to blogging after such a long time off! What I’d like to do today is list 10 things I really enjoy about Livi. Thanks for stopping by!

1. God has given her an inquisitive mind. She is always wanting to be learning / isn’t scared to try new things. Like trying big rollercoasters years ahead of when her Dad was brave enough!
2. She enjoys technology and art. Drawing, coloring, iPods, cameras, etc. Not a shocker that this makes me smile!
3. If she’s done something wrong, she’s normally not too proud of it. She might try to make us understand why she did it (make it seem less terrible), but she is genuinely kind and can tame her wild side fairly quickly.
4. Livi doesn’t boast about things, and sometimes forgets to even make us aware of what’s happened. Like winning a spelling bee two weeks ago. Maybe she thought I’d be jealous, since I’ve never done that?
5. Like her Dad, she won’t stop talking about something if it has her interest. If it is on her mind that something will happen, it normally will. That will take you places girl, but stay content! God wants to equip you to change the world using your abilities.
6. She’s such a tall girl, and can run down a soccer ball in fewer paces than most of her opponents. Or score 4 goals in a game, something I’m also not sure I’ve done!
7. Her laugh and little voice bring a smile to our house VERY often! She sure can be a funny one.
8. Livi understands that Jesus was our model of serving others first, and likes to share things when she can.
9. The girl can eat. And eat. And somehow not gain weight.
10. We know she loves us, and loves Jesus. There’s nothing more important to me!

Daddy loves you Livi. I’m glad I got to come home and bring you Mr. Wok for lunch today! These next 10 years sure are going to be fun with you.

It really is amazing to think about the different talents / abilities God’s given us. After seeing this video interview posted by the Lima News with my cousin Luke, I thought I’d share it here. If I were one of the horses, I wouldn’t mess with Luke. Maybe someday I can go hang out with him while he’s working and snap some neat photos – without being “swiped” of course! Do some of your family members do work that falls outside of your abilities?

Having children is definitely something that makes an impact on your life, just as much as you will on theirs. This weekend I took an hour and hung out in our oldest (of three) daughter’s bedroom. She had been up there for a little while, and I wanted to check out what she might be interested in. She was having lots of fun with her new weaving loom! I’m definitely into design, but have never really taken time to understand what goes into weaving. So my daughter gave me a quick lesson in how she was creating these potholders!

There’s so much attention to detail and patience required!
And to think that she is just as capable of that (at the age of 9) as most adults. Sometimes I don’t practice putting that much attention to what I am doing. It’s exciting to know that she (and now our middle daughter) are content with creating crafts, that’s for sure. It takes effort for us parents to gauge our children, and encourage them / help them through learning new things. Sometimes (like this) it takes off without much assistance required. Or wanted! Kids always enjoy growing and maturing, don’t they!

I guess that’s a better position to be in than not caring what your kids are up to, and ending up realizing they’ve spent countless hours doing mindless things. What’s something you did as a child that you can look back and be proud of?