Home again, home again, jiggity jig!  We had a wonderful time in Germany!  Sorry to all of you about the no posts thing.  We spent our time to the fullest, resting when we could and exploring, fellowshipping, laughing, drinking, singing, photographing, working, laundering, canoeing, hiking, swimming, campfire-ing, shopping...etc, etc....  We also had to pay to use the internet.  Anyway, we had a fabulous trip and have tons of pictures, stories, jokes, and memories!  Thank you for your prayers.

Ellen

We are safely in Germany!  Nathanael and I are having a wonderful time.  There are many things to tell and many pictures to post, but that will have to be at a later time.  I am about to start typing the skits that I'm preparing for the camp.  We will post soon! 

Currently Reading Great Expectations By Charles Dickens see related

Alright, so I didn't keep you posted.  For some reason, I haven't had much interest in the computer for the past few months.  Maybe it's just a summer phase. 

Nathanael and I leave for Germany on July 17th and will be gone until August 11th!  We have been invited to lead worship at the same English camp that DQ and Qma went to last summer.  This year, the camp theme is worship, so Nathanael will give a few talks on the subject and I will work with the camp drama projects while we both lead worship.  We'll also take part in some small group stuff too!  We're both really excited!  They are building the front of Solomon's temple at the camp and I hope they let me help.  After the camp is over, we are going to tour Reformational sites in Germany!  Woo hoo!!!  Martin Luther here we come! 

This Friday (23rd) we are participating in a prayer concert to help raise money for our trip and one of our friends mission trips to China.  A bunch of musicians around Arkansas will be playing!  It's free to come and people can give whatever God leads them to, be it prayer, encouragement, money, or all three.  It's gonna be an awesome concert!  The doors open at 6:30pm and the concert starts at 7.  It's going to be held at St. Andrews Church in the Lutheran High School building on Hughs and Markham.  So everybody come!

~Ellen

It's almost been a whole month since I last updated this site.  Wow...

It's been pretty crazy for Nathanael and I lately.  I've been working on a huge research project about Ozark folklore and superstition in folktales.  It was really interesting, but a lot of work.  We also went on Monday and Tuesday of this week to Poplar Bluff, MO for Mamaw's funeral.  She was almost 91 years old and very frail.  I know Qmater has spoken about her on her xanga site.  Nathanael, Noah, and I had the priviledge to be with Mamaw a few hours before her death.  We went to visit her at the nursing home and found her in a diabetic shock.  While we waited for the nurse to come and for the EMTS to come pick her up, we sang hymns to her, held her hands, and prayed for her.  I don't know if she knew what was happening or understood that it was us.  She seemed to recognize us, but she couldn't really communicate.  Then we all went to the ER and met up with DQ, Qma, and my dad.  We stayed for a while and visited her as she slept.  By the time they got her to the ER, her blood sugar had dropped to 15 (safe blood sugar is at like 80-100).  We left the hospital that night, and got a phone call early the next morning that she had passed away around 3 or 3:30 am. 

The funeral was well done and well attended.  A lot of people love Mamaw.  Michael Porter sang two hymns while Nathanael played the guitar and it was very special.  I'm sure Mamaw is very proud. 

Some people might think that your are not supposed to have any fun on a funeral trip, but we had a blast!  We were surrounded by friends!  After the visitation on Monday night, a bunch of us went to Ruby Tuesdays for dinner and had too much fun!  We swapped stories and laughed until we were in pain!  It was our version of a wake.  I hope people have that much fun for my wake.  It was good to laugh and to relax.  I think we are all healthier for it.  Well, except for Nathanael.  He laughed a whole lot, but he has been sick since Easter.  Please pray for him.  He's been a good sport, but I know that it's wearing him down.

We are going to the Highlands Festival this Saturday!  I'm so excited!  My family is bringing Charlie, our Border Collie, along!  We joked the other night that he will be so confused when he sees other dogs hearding sheep instead of cats. 

I'll keep you posted!