Kathrina turned four!

One must realize when one reaches the ripe old age of four, that there is a certain order to the Universe, not the least including birthday cake & candle protocol! The prescribed steps in properly fulfilling birthday tradition include, but are not limited to:



Blowing out the lit candles;





Licking all remaining icing from said candles;




Stopping to ponder the wonder of mothers and their ability to create works of art in cake;





And last, but not least...Presents!!!

Vacation

We took our first flying vacation with two kids under 4. It was quite an adventure! Dad took Rina, Mom took Bella, and we had separate flights. Flying went well, got to our destination--Aunt Kedri's house. Then for five glorious days, we just relaxed, enjoyed each other's company, hung out on the deck, at the park, the Farmer's Market, and some rented movies capped off our entertainment. It was great to spend time with the cousin babies together, the auntie-moms swapping stories, and the uncle-daddies mixing in the fun. It was all time well spent--always is when people are the agenda--and we enjoyed ourselves immensely!

Thanks to our hosts! Hope you all enjoy the following photos documenting our trip.

Rina's Photo Essay

Traveling, from a three-year-old perspective...

SanFam

Our Family Photos, edited by Mom.

Metzger Family

Metzger Family Photos.

Kiddo Pics

Here are the Kid Pictures.

Life ten years later...

Charity's ten year high school reunion is this weekend. It is just crazy how time flies by! Growing up, 28 seemed like so far away. I had all kinds of thoughts about where I would be and what I would be doing...None of them ever included being a Pastor, living in Northeast Kansas, or putting my thoughts on the world wide web for anyone to read. I believe when we find ourselves in these moments where life catches us off-guard and we realize that we are not where we ever thought we would be, we have a decision to make. Will we look at our path and rejoice because we are in a place that much better suits who we are; that person we didn't know ten years ago? Or will we mourn the loss of yesterday's dreams? I guess it depends on where we find ourselves. At this point in my life, I wouldn't choose to be anywhere else. I wouldn't choose a different vocation. I wouldn't choose a different family situation. It may not be where I thought I would be, but in my case, it is so much better. I am not trying to sermonize, but there is a scripture promise that I believe sums up my thoughts. Paul says (and I paraphrase here) that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has ever conceived what God has planned for us. If I had been given a map of my life ten years ago, I wouldn't have believed it. I would have tried to avoid the lows and hang onto the highs, and I would have lost this moment in time, when I can look back and say, I wouldn't change it at all.

Summertime, and the livin' is BUSY!!!

We had Vacation Bible School last week! It was a lot of fun, 16 kiddos in all over two days. Kathrina had fun at her first VBS.I will put in a pic of her class--she of course not paying any attention!
Life continues on its streak towards Fall!
Ministry Conference this week, then vacation!
Here's to meeting my cutie of a nephew (Ariel) in person!
I just can't wait!

Song Lyrics-When I Lay it Down

There is Joy-there is joy
There is Comfort-there is comfort
There is Peace, peace, peace
When I lay it down

When I lay down my burdens,
and I place them at his feet
When I kneel at this altar,
I will never face defeat, because

There is Joy-there is joy
There is Comfort-there is comfort
There is victory
When I lay it down

By Charity

Song Lyrics-King of my Heart

Jesus, King of my heart,
You're everything to me.
Jesus, you saved my soul;
now you're making me whole,
So I can be more like you.

You rule my heart like a glorious king.
You walk beside me through all that life brings,

Jesus, Jesus,
You're everything to me.
By Charity

Busy, busy, busy!

I predict that the rest of our summer will simply fly by! We have Bible School July 20th-21st; a conference July 26th-28th; family vacation August 2nd-13th; and family camp labor day weekend!
I hope we can keep up! Sometimes life seems to slip into high gear and the next thing you know, its next year!
Goal for the rest of the summer: Take Time to Breathe!

Happy July!

We have been enjoying ourselves this fine month of July!
Our church had a booth at the town festival on the 4th and we had lots of fun interacting with people from all over. Here's a pic of our patriotic daughter, cute as can be!

The past year

We've had a busy year! We moved from our old house to our new house in September, and Charity Started at a new ministry position. Adam and Allie were married in September as well. We gathered for Christmas at our house and added Bella to our family in December. Early 2007 was spent getting to know our newest addition, ministering to folks here, and looking forward to Kedri's new one to come in April. In the mean time we hosted Grandma Sandstrom for Easter. That was fun and she got to meet face-to-face with her grands here for the first time. Grandma Ruthie has been popping in and out as time permits her to make the short drive from her new place. All in all, very satisfying good times for us this year! Here are some pics to prove it!

Easter With Grandma Sandstrom

Linda came for Easter and Rina enjoyed getting acquainted with grandma. Here they are seeing what the Easter Bunny dropped off for the special day!

Family Christmas

We gathered at our new house for Christmas. Every time we gather at Christmas, funny pictures are the norm.





This time we decided to celebrate the local vintage shopping options by gathering hats, gloves, ties, and pipes to make funny pseudo vintage pics.



The ladies are being scolded for their un-lady-like behavior, while the men are looking studious.



***Don't worry, no tobacco in the pipes and no actual smoking, just props***

Adam's Wedding

My Brother Adam got married!

Meet my Sister-In-Law Allie!










My Brother on his wedding day giving the BIG THUMBS UP!!












My Sister Kedri and I also took advantage of the gathering to take the first of many sister preggy belly pics.

Here's Rich doing one of the things he does best-love and snuggle his girls! That is why he makes such a great household manager and stay-home-dad!

This is Charity in the church she pastors. It is full of neat people also seeking to follow Jesus in their life adventures. More than just a job, Charity likes to get involved with the everyday lives of the people she ministers with!

Girls At Work

Our girls are hard at work learning and growing; preparing for their own life adventures.

Rina seems determined to use all necessary force to find the solutions to life's quandaries.





Bella, on the other hand is busy learning by observing all the things Big Sis has already figured out...

(like how to use the digital camera to take pics of Lil Sis)!

New things

It's kind of funny how there are always new things to try, new things to do, or maybe just new ways to do old things like keeping in touch with family and friends. We may be a little behind the game, just starting to blog, but I think "why not, better late than never."
So, here is to the beginning of another new adventure for the Sandstrom family, sharing our lives with you on the World Wide Web!