Summer is now officially over ... school has started again and everything is moving back into a routine at church. The weather here, however, does not know this ~ smile. The weather seems to believe the summer is just beginning ... 102^ in the shade and predictions of this 'warm' weather into October. Ugh!

August, like most months, has been filled with activity and general busyness. Kayli left at the end of July to spend a couple of weeks with Court in South Carolina ... and Brandi, Jared and I headed out for Royal Family Kid's Camp.

RFKC was started in 1985 by a couple devoted to creating a positive experience for children aged 7-11 years who have been abused and neglected. All campers who attend are in foster care, group homes or state approved care. There are 159 camps held each summer ... 140 in the U.S. and 19 internationally.

We spent an incredible week with 29 kiddos from our area. What an opportunity to show them the love and kindness of God ... in a safe place. I wish I could show you pictures of their sweet faces but for the safety of the children, only one camera was allowed. Unfortunately, mine was not the one. These memories will just have to stay in our hearts instead of being printed on paper. We know the children were given a great gift by the many shows of God's love but I think in the end, we were the ones who were changed ... and blessed.

Jared and Kayli then spent three days at a camp for developmentally disabled adults ... Kayli got to help babysit the children of the staff. I had the pleasure of being the official photographer at this camp. I spent a day there enjoying the fun and fellowship of these precious people and attempting to capture every moment possible. For a sneak peek of that day, visit my photography blog.

August also marked a special time in history ... on August 8th,

Brandi turned 50 years old!

His office staff enjoyed ribbing him by stringing black balloons, crepe paper and pictures of his 'younger' years all over the office. He has already begun receiving what he calls 'old people mail', the AARP is diligently seeking his business and a friend brought ME flowers on his birthday, in sympathy ... now that I'm living with an old man and all ~ smile.  I don't really mind so much ... I plan on keeping him for another 50! That is, if he'll put up with ME that long.

In August, we also got to spend a week with Amber, Joel and our sweet grandbabies ... even managed to get some decent photos, even though they were a little uncooperative when Grammy was taking pictures when she should have been baking cookies and giving hugs ~ smile. I guess there are times when you should put some things DOWN and take time to pick UP the most important ones.

Kayli is now officially a HIGH SCHOOL student ... wow, can't believe my baby is so big! Jared is still working at the rehab center and is now attending evening classes at Tarrant County College. He's working toward a degree in deaf interpretation. He is a natural ... we are so proud of him.

Brandi keeps very busy in his ministry ... it seems we meet each other as ships in the night a good amount of the time. Things are definitely different here than we are used to. Being on the mission field and in small church ministry, we knew everything that was going on and did just about everything ... together. It's not the same working for a large church with a large staff. I no longer am expected to be 'the' preacher's wife ... there are 4 others. Brandi no longer needs me to be his secretary ... he has one at the office. See my sad face ... well, it's sort of sad ... oh wait, it's NOT at all! Actually, I kind of like that part .... smile. Anyway, we are slowly adjusting to the new way of doing things and finding our niche bit by bit. I'll be teaching a Ladies bible class starting next week and am managing to find lots of other little projects to get involved in. We are blessed daily by being here. God is faithful to give us what we need, when we need it.

My biggest project for the summer has been to diligently pursue a photography business. I've taken care of all the legalities of starting a business and have been methodically following my business plan. Most importantly, I've been taking pictures. I'm in the stage called 'portfolio building', trying to put together a knockout portfolio for a website and marketing materials. Business cards and packaging are in the works and lots of other things are on the horizon. Mostly though, I'm just enjoying having a camera in my hand and sharing what I can with others. I hope you'll log onto my photography blog and take a look at the photos there. You can leave comments now without being a member, but if you register and subscribe, you'll be notified by email each time an entry is made. I would love your input.

Have a wonderful week and always remember ...

Life is short ...

take time to stop and smell the roses!

The news is out ... I keep hearing it over and over.

My girls in Estonia are

Shining Like Stars in the Universe

I'm so proud of you. You are a blessing to my heart. I'm so glad God gave you to me!

Love You and Miss You ALL!!

Brandi and I had the opportunity to get away for a few days at the first of July, just the two of us. We celebrated our 31st anniversary (and spent a quiet day of reflection for Dustin's birthday) on the beautiful island of Jamaica. Life seems to have been so 'transitional' since Dustin's death and we've greatly needed some alone time to reflect on the journey we've made so far ... and the one we are presently on. It was a true blessing to finally be able to run away and do that for a time. 

Got to spend some relaxing time by the pool and on the beach, do some sight seeing and take in some of the local culture. The resort was more of a 'Fantasyland' than a true experience of Jamaica. We hated that we didn't get to spend more time in the real world of the Jamaican culture but we enjoyed the pampering we received just the same. We had a little problem getting used to all the froo-froo at first ... everything was done for us, there were no prices on the menus ~ we could eat what we wanted and how much we wanted ~ and to top it off, we sat around and behaved so lazily! At first, I felt totally guilty for my lack of productiveness (I don't do that too well) but it didn't take long to really begin to enjoy it all. I think I may have even come home with a slight 'queen' complex but unfortunately it was back to the real world pretty quickly for me! When we returned, there were no kind people calling me 'madame', or pulling out my chair, or putting a napkin in my lap, or refilling my refrigerator with a daily portion of 'wata'! So, so sad ....

We did get to take one day for an outing. While out that day, we were able to take a river safari on the Black River, touch a crocodile, and hike into the Blue Mountains for a peek at some of the beautiful waterfalls there. I never stop being amazed at the how God's fingerprints are everywhere we go. We also saw some amazing evidences of the daily lives of the Jamaican people. My camera was screaming for images of the local life but it didn't do too well in a winding, bumpy bus. I guess it will have to be up to my aging, foggy brain to capture those memories and keep them there. 

Since our return home ... well, life has been in constant motion and it doesn't look like that will be changing anytime soon. Do I sound like a broken record???

After Kayli returned from Lacey's (that's where she stayed while we were in Jamaica), she headed out to Oklahoma City for camp. She got back just in time to celebrate her 14th birthday with our friends, Charlotte and David, from Arkansas.

Jared has been working full time at a rehabilitation center for the mentally disabled. He translates for a couple of deaf clients there and helps work with them as they are learning life skills. He'll be attending some classes at the university in the fall.

We had VBS at church last week and then went to training for a camp designed to minister to abused and neglected children ... Brandi, Jared and I will be helping out there next week.

I've even managed to fit in some great fellowship with a few of our ladies from church and the local quilt guild. Got to spend Saturday learning a new skill ... stained-glass quilting. I always feel so energized when I have friends to be creative with. =0). I continue to study and practice my photography . This is one of my greatest joys. I hope to see it bring some opportunities for ministry and business in the future.

Kayli heads out for South Carolina in a couple of days to spend some time with Court before she starts school again in September. We are looking forward to seeing some good friends in a few days and hope to put our arms around some grandbabies real soon.

We continue to have our good days and bad days ... some are joyful and some are teary. I am missing my boy ever so much the past few days so these have been teary ones. I would give anything to have a big hug from Dustin right now.  I keep being reminded to take every opportunity and not let it slip away.

May you take every opportunity and not let it slip away. May you see God's fingerprints where ever you go ...

Have a blessed week!

Our little girl is 14 years old today ....

Happy Birthday, Lillybet 

(aka KK, Kayli~ke, Kaylitchka, Kaylibug)

We are so proud of the young lady you are becoming.

We love you !!

Three very special Estonian girls will graduate from high school tomorrow. If we were there, we would be standing by their sides, giving them lots of hugs, taking lots of photographs and laying a big bouquet of flowers in their arms.

Wish we were there!

Congratulations

Anu, Siki and Riina

We are so proud of you .... sending lots of hugs and kisses your way!!

We love you!

Our hearts go out to the families of the nine firefighters who were lost last night in Charleston, South Carolina.

Until Amber and her family returned to Louisiana a few months ago, our son-in-law, Joel was a member of the firehouse in Charleston that fought that fire. In an attempt to save lives, many of his fellow firefighters and his friends were lost last night.

We are feeling ever so grateful for Joel's protection and safety today ... and we are feeling deeply saddened for those who are grieving their loss.

These men join the long list of our country's heroes that we should pay honor to everyday ... please keep praying.

Jared and I returned from our IPS (Institute of Photographic Studies) class at the end of April with lots of photographic knowledge crammed in our heads and a great need to practice, practice, practice. That's what we've been doing and we are having a great time doing it. We've had the opportunity to take a few 'day trips' around the area and we've had a lot of fun 'shooting' the things we see. It seems that none of us, including Kaylitchka, walk out the door these days without our cameras in tow. It's really cool to be able to spend some relaxing time as a family and to search out ways to get up close and see things through different eyes than we have before.

The rest of our family is having fun too, since two of our married daughters and their husbands enjoy photography as well. We even have our own private photoblog where we are sharing images and being challenged with a 'concept' of the week, all inclusive of comments and critiques, for those of us who feel a need to be raked through the dirt on a regular basis ... Will and Rowan would be so proud! I'm just kidding, it's not really so bad ... after Will's critiques at IPS, I can handle anything! He made me a man ... oh, wait ... a woMAN! Anyway...

Lots of folks have asked us to post our IPS photos (the decent ones, anyway) and to share the images we are continuing to capture, just for the sake of sharing. So... it is with a little fear and trepidation, I have set up a photoblog to do that. I'm still getting it up and running good but would love to have you join me there. Leave comments on the photos you like (and if you must, on the ones you don't like ~ smile) and share my journey as I strive to become a photographer for the glory of God!

www.xanga.com/pjkphotography

See you there!

I just returned from a four-day trip to visit my parents in southern Lousiana. It's been eighteen years since I've been to the "bayou". Some things have remained the same ... so much has changed.

I used to love to go there as a child, before my parents actually lived there. I wasn't born into the culture of Cajuns that take up residence there, I was adopted in when my mother married some 40 years ago. To be honest, I'm not quite sure if I ever completely fit in. Even so, I still have some fond memories of the time I spent there.

I remember standing by my Grandma Sis as she made her famous gumbo and that my Granddaddy Boots always had a can of  'goobers' (peanuts) to share. I remember the old Creole-style house on the water that my great-grandparents lived in. It was made of wood and stood on piers to protect from the threat of rising water. I remember the airy rooms with tall ceilings, four-poster beds and wardrobes instead of closets. I remember the front part of the house that had been closed up tight, a one-time general store to fisherman and townspeople who stopped that way. I remember once being privileged to take a tour of that old general store and being amazed even as a young person, at the stories I knew it could tell. There were dusty, old bottles of medicines and cleaning supplies still standing in their perfectly 'fronted' positions and various other things that the folks may need for their life on the bayou. It had long become a storage room for nets and fishing gear but I was still so drawn to that place. Most of all, I remember my little great-grandfather sitting on the back porch whittling wood and my little round great-grandmother cooking in her kitchen. There was a fireplace that took up one whole wall and a long wooden table in the middle of the room. She had one of those big handcarved bowls in the center of that table and I would watch her make a well in the flour with her hands, adding eggs and milk, mixing and kneading and pulling in small amounts of flour at a time ... never measuring with a spoon or a cup... until the dough had a perfect consistency for the fluffy biscuits that would soon be baking in her ancient oven.

Later, after I was married and my folks had moved down to the bayou, I would take my little ones there. They would be scooped up by Uncle Tootsie's big hands .. the weathered hands of a seasoned fisherman. They would dangle their feet in the murky water, like I had, and watch the men bring in the cages full of crabs after a day out on their trolling boats. Life down there was always bustling but there was still something peaceful about it. 

My Grandaddy Boots and my great-grandparents left this life many, many years ago and my Grandma Sis now resides in a nursing home suffering with Alzheimer's disease. The bustling life of fishermen is no longer present on the wharf like it used to be and the little creole-style house that my greatgrandparents lived in, is tired and run down ... worn by time and weather. My parents live in a wooden house on stilts that used to belong to my Grandma Sis and they are battling the ills of cancer and other ailments.

Some things have remained the same ... but so much has changed.

Time takes it's toll on the earthly things of this life ... our possessions rust and fall apart, our bodies become tired and worn ... and we begin looking at what was behind us and long for what we once had.

Then God speaks ... 

"Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroy."  Luke 12:33

"Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you."  Isa 46:4

"In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded. But you remain the same, and your years will never end." Psalm 201:25-27

"Whoever is wise, let him -- consider the great love of the Lord." Psalm 107:43

... and I am reminded that only one thing withstands the test of time ... the love of a merciful and amazing God ...

My True Treasure

and the things I long for must be of Him and the love I share must come from Him. Love is not erased by the passage of time  ... and for that I am blessed and grateful!

Just got in from a long day away. We went to Ft. Hood Army Base for a special Memorial Day service and a Memorial Monument dedication. A bronze statue of a child consoling a mourning soldier has recently been erected and the front and back of the wall surrounding the statue contains a plaque for each soldier being honored ... 235 in all. The names of each soldier from the 4th Infantry who died between 2005-2006 were read. There were many military officials present and several hundred family members were there to honor their loved ones. It was a day to remember all that our sons and daughters accomplished in their commitment to our country ... and to us.  It was a day to remember the sacrifices they made for our freedom ... for your freedom ... and for the sacrifices that their families have made, as well. A wreath was placed at the front of the monument by General Thurmond and his wife and the General assured us that our loved ones would never be forgotten. Emotions were high ... tears flowed easily. It was a very somber day.

We received a small replica of the bronze statue that now graces Ft. Hood in memory of our fallen soldiers.

Ours is beautifully inscribed ...

Cpl Dustin L Kendall

HHC 3rd STB 3 HBCT/ 4ID

30 June 1984 ~ 15 January 2006

Steadfast and Loyal

Our son ... our hero. We will never, never forget.

Glad to finally be back online after 3 weeks of what the technician called a 'wobbly' signal. Our main tower that keeps us up and running was hit by lightening multiple times and we've been having a difficult time staying online since that time. We've waited patiently while they worked on that problem all this time, only to find out that our problem was unrelated. So ... after a personal visit from our technician, and a new receiver and redirected satellite, it looks like we are good to go. Yay! I always feel so disconnected when my email and internet won't work properly. Will be glad to get connected once again.

We've had a pretty busy few weeks. Jared and I attended a photography school for two weeks ... that was more than great ... will have to tell you all about it sometime soon. Over the last couple of weeks, we've had the opportunity to practice our new skills a few times on various outings ... will have to share some of those sometime soon, as well.

I celebrated a Mother's Day full of mixed emotions. My blessings continue to overflow and I'm so thankful to have 5 wonderful kiddos who made me feel extra special. Brandi took me Mother's Day shopping the day before and spoiled me with a cool new macro lens and a reflector. Even so, there were moments of sadness on this day ... a day when the absence of our Dustin is so obvious. I appreciate your prayers and your 'thinking of you' notes during a difficult and precious day of memories. You are all blessings to my heart.

Tomorrow our family heads south to Ft. Hood Army Base. There will be a special memorial service and monument dedication to honor the soldiers from the 4th infantry who fell during 2005 and 2006. This too will most likely be a difficult day. We would appreciate your prayers on our behalf and on behalf of all those who will gather in various places to honor their precious children who died serving our country.

Take time today to truly honor those you love. Value your time together ... spend precious moments ... make treasured memories.

We love you!