Aguascalientes

We made it safely to Aguascalientes and it's a beautiful city. I´ll have to post pictures when I get the chance. All is well here. Today we will rent a van and see as much of the city as possible. The bell hop from our hotel is going to be our guide. He used to live in Tuscon so he speaks very good English as well. He loves his city and he´s excited to show us all about it. I´d better go for now, see you soon.


Jeff

Cuernavaca y mas

We're in Mexico and we're well! Our first stop was Cuernavaca and
we're getting a lot of our questions answered. Doug and Sandy Holcomb
have been very gracious hosts and guides. It's a beautiful place with
very friendly people. We'll try to keep you updated as we get
Internet access.

Christmas Parties

We attended our class Christmas party last Friday. It was great getting to sing and play games with everyone. Any moment we spend not studying these days is very welcome around our house. :)
Noah and Juliana got to see Santa in their classes on Friday too. Noah was very excited and Juliana walked over to get her present, but didn't want him to pick her up. I'll get pictures up soon so you can see. Right now, it's back to studying.

She who has ears, let her fear

Here is Juliana at the Doctor's office. She had tubes put in her ears last week. She seems to be feeling better and has no signs of ear infections since the operation. I think it was probably harder on mommy than on baby, but both did well. :)

My "Big Bed"

Juliana is no longer sleeping in her crib. She's graduated to the toddler bed. She is very excited and walks around saying "big bed" "big bed." She goes to bed when it's time and stays all night long. She's really growing up fast!

Blinding Sun

I took this today on the way home . I put it through the
infrared filter on my phone and I thought it looked pretty cool.

Arrrrrrr you sure you can't spare another necklace?

I'm glad I caught this moment because it didn't last long. :)

Pirate Party

We also got to go to my nephew's birthday party while we were in Ft.
Worth. Noah and Juliana got to go on a treasure hunt. :)

Family Fun

We got a chance to visit my brother's family in Fort Worth this week.
While we were there we got a chance to go downtown. It was beautiful
and we had a great time.

Friends and Fun

We got to see our good friends Chris and Becky while we were in
Longview.

Can you spot our Indian?

And again

Our budding musician

Horn Yonkers

Trees are fun

And again

Unconventional swing play

Excercise

We have fun at the park. :)

Priorities

Juliana rarely goes anywhere these days without her blanket, her
"baby,"or her juice (barely visible under her blanket).

We're A Snuggly Family

Turkey here we come!

We're planning on spending our Thanksgiving break in Longview. We're also stopping along the way to visit my brother's family in the Metroplex. I hope we'll be able to see many of you on our travels.

-Happy Turkey Day,

Jeff

# 4--Where did the Bible come from?

2Pe 1:20-21 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. (21) For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

1Th 2:13 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.

The Bible is the Word of God. The message is God's message. It was revealed to men (Apostles and Prophets) by the Holy Spirit. They wrote it down so that others could hear and know the truth.

The Bible does not change because of our interpretation. It is our job to study and find out what God said, and then to tell THAT MESSAGE to others. The Bible from cover to cover is a message of hope for people who are willing to listen and obey what God says. It is a sober message of condemnation for those who refuse to listen and obey.

Mommy's Home! :)

Here are the kids waiting for Kristina at the airport. They love the airport. Noah is most excited about what the passengers always bring: pretzels or peanuts. :) Juliana ran to meet Kristina and gave her a big hug. This is Juliana's "cheese face." It actually looks like a smile so that bodes well for future pictures. She's quite the little ham.

# 3--How do I get faith in God?

Rom 10:17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

Without the Bible, it is possible to know that there is a God by looking around at creation. But without the Bible we would know precious little about Jesus, and we would not know what God says a person must do to have their sins forgiven. Without the apostles' testimony a person could not be saved.

I know that many people would like to have a stronger faith in God. I know that many struggle with doubts and wonder what they can do to get closer to God. Here is one sure solution that God offers to all mankind: Read the Bible. "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."

# 2--What is God's plan?

Eph 1:4-5 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love (5) He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,

I love to read that God knew before the world was made that He would send Jesus to make a way for us to come back to Him. He knew we would separate ourselves from Him through sin, and loved us anyway. This tells us that the church is not an afterthought. The church was part of God's plan all along.

"Kids Eat Free"...are there any better words?

I guess the kids are missing their mother...and they've decided to ship themselves to San Antonio. They really had a lot of fun playing in the suitcase today.

This morning we went to the park to Noah's friend Liam's birthday party. Everybody had a great time. Here's Noah after he just pinned the tail on the donkey. He'd never played that game before and didn't understand that you couldn't peek under the blindfold. So, of course he did very well. :)


One of our friends from Sunset (Dave) plays the guitar and sings very well. Liam's parents got him to play and sing for the kids at the party. They had a great time singing along.


We made our way to Denny's for dinner tonight. Kids eat free on Saturdays with an adult entree. Where else in town can three people eat so well for $5? They gave Noah some "Mystery Powder" that turned his lemonade blue. He thought it was pretty cool.


Here's Juliana trying to decide if she's going to take another bite or not. (More likely she's trying to find another bite of fruit instead of eating the rest of her bread). She ate really well and I think she was pretty full by this point.

# 1--Is there a God?

Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Rom 1:19-20 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. (20) For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

Most of the people I know believe that to be true…that there is a God. I know some who try to hide from that fact, try to push it out of their mind, pretend it is not so, or just live lives so busily that they can "forget" that there is a Creator who has expectations for them.

Some others are trying to do their best to live for Him. I've learned a lot of things over the past year and a half that I'd like to share with everyone I know. I'm going to do my best to offer God's word and God's truths to those willing to listen.

This will be a journey…and I do not know where it will lead, but I do know that God is the only hope for any of us. And, there is a God.

Daddy's Day

Kristina is in San Antonio with her sisters and her mother until Monday. They meet every year for a weekend of shopping (mostly getting their Christmas shopping done) and fun. So that means I've got the kids all to myself for a few days. We've really been enjoying each other so far. I would hate to have to do things all by myself for much longer than that, but it's fun for a little while. :)


Juliana's hair is finally long enough for a pony tail. She's never liked us to put bows in her hair, but this didn't seem to bother her at all.

Noah was a big help at the library today. He enjoys doing things for others like opening and holding doors for them and pushing his sister in the stroller.

They each got to pick a book (Noah picked Juliana's too). Noah picked one about Curious George. He knew which one he wanted before we went in. Kristina read it to him a few weeks ago at the library. We went to the Curious George section and began looking through it...he seemed disappointed with each one we picked up until we got to the exact one he was looking for. He giggled and said "That's it daddy! I've been looking for that one for a week!"


Fridays are long days for the kids. Our classes don't get out until 1pm, and so the kids don't eat until about 1:30 or 2. That pushes their naps back, and then by the end of the day they're pretty worn out. This is Juliana waiting for her turn to get dressed for bed.


Noah's Great-Grandmother sent him a Halloween card with $1 in it. We told him he could pick out one thing at the dollar store that he wanted. He picked out this game called Stack Tower. We take turns adding pieces to the precarious tower, and the one with the most points (earned by getting 3 in a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally) at the end wins. He loves it, and it's a good review of numbers as well as good practice at hand-eye coordination.

Kids are fun :)

Juliana loves her sunglasses. (She loves anything she can wear)
Here she is at school eating her snack.
Here we are at the dollar store. They have a good time playing "dress up."
A rare moment when they're both still.
We love to read together.

Our Frog

Our Penguin

Happy Halloween!

It's a zoo around here!

Family picture

Mexico and Report Cards

For those of you who've not yet heard...we've committed to going to Mexico after we finish the curriculum here at S.I.B.I. (including advanced missions for six months after we graduate).

In addition, our team is already forming. We've committed to going with our very good friends and classmates, the Garcias. Patrick graduated from Texas Tech and worked for Raytheon. His wife Brandon'a graduated from Lubbock Christian University and was an art teacher before coming to S.I.B.I. Their precious daughter Sophia was born earlier this year. Patrick and Jeff were co-leaders of our class last year as were Kristina and Brandon'a for thiers. And, our families have been growing closer every day.

We're narrowing down the list of possible cities in which we'll work (we even met tonight to pray, go over research, and plan). We're also planning a survey trip to visit the cities that make the cut in late Dec./Early Jan.

We're very excited about what God has in store for us and for Mexico in the future.

Kristina and I also recieved our report cards today for last term, and I'm pleased to report we both did very well.

I'd love to talk to you all more about Mexico and our plans. If you'd like to hear more, please call us anytime.

--Goodnight,

Jeff

Stromboli night

Mobile

Noah and Juliana enjoy riding/pushing things around the neighborhood.
And playing in the dirt and rocks. :)

From Noah with love

Noah gave this flower to me the other day, and he said "don't lose it
Daddy." Usually he brings Kristina and me weeds and calls them
flowers. But I love it! It makes me so happy that he is giving us
gifts. I have never valued weeds before, but these are precious. I
love those moments when I get a better picture of God in my mind...I
know that my gifts must look a lot like weeds sometimes, but he loves
me with a Father's love and they are so beautiful to Him. I couldn't
keep this flower alive, but I didn't want to lose this memory. I hope
you all enjoy this flower from Noah as much as I did. :)

"Lay in a round"

Wal-mart parking lot last week

Boxing day?

Sometimes the best fun is free :)

First Day

Noah and Juliana started their first day of school today. They'll be
attending preschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays this year. They both
hit the ground running.