Monday, December 22, 2008
Travel Plans
Christmas is coming, and we are traveling tomorrow to Utah to visit Ethan's family who are gathering at his brother David's house. On Friday we will make the long drive to Minnesota to see Elysia's family. We expect to arrive there on Saturday night. If you need to get in touch with us, please email Ethan or me, or you may call us at David Larson's house or Mel Frank's house next week. God bless you all!
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Gretchen's Poem
Christmas Words From A-Z
by Gretchen Larson
A is for Angels, the Shepherd saw.
B is for Baby, that Jesus was.
C is for Christ, Who is in Heven.
D is for Donkey, that Mary rode.
E is for Exaltation, What you shoud do.
F is for Frankincense, that Wise-men brout.
G is for Glory, that Angels sang.
H is for Heaven, the angels live in.
I is for Immanuel, God with us.
J is for Jesus, Oh my Lord, In a good way.
K is for King, some people call Him.
L is for Lord, I love Him the best.
M is for Myrrh, that Wisemen brout.
N is for Nazareth, that Joseph lived in.
O is for Oh Holy Night, that Christmas song.
P is for Presents, that you get.
Q is for Quiet, Jesus was.
R is for Rejoice, Angels did.
S is for Stable, cows and for sheep.
T is for Tell, Shepherds did.
U is for Under, Innkeeper said.
V is for Voice, That came out of angels mouths.
W is for Wise-Men, that brout 3 gifts.
X is for X-Mas, Santa made up.
Y is for Ye, Angels say.
Z is for Zebra, Not Christmasy!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Boys Will Be Boys, Girls will....
We got some snow yesterday and it actually managed to stay on the streets and became gloriously hardpacked. That kinda street stirs up my old Rally racing propensities...
Nothing like gettin' my old Datsun 510 street racer reved up and sideways... Or Brigitta, my old VW Bug; Queen of the Alley Rally...
Yep, back in the day.
Today I own a minivan.
When we were going to school today I was having what little fun the minivan would allow; front wheel spin on the hard pack. (woo woo) Thank God I don't have traction control or the thrill really would be gone. I did try a little swerving and throttle modulation, but overcoming the front drive, horrible weight bias, and nearly indefeatable understeer...well, that's another thing.
Here comes the difference;
Peter seems to instinctively dig it...
"WOW Dad!!! Do that AGAIN!!, How did you DO that?? That was Coool! Dad! do that AGAIN Dad!!"
Gretchen on the other hand instinctively becomes Chicken Little
(...and I am quoting verbatim here)
"Daddy!! Stop that!! What would happen if you bashed into those cars!!"
(what?... that one car? ....parked 20 feet up the hill on the driveway?)
Though she has never seen that happen (thank God) ...and never would at 20 MPH,
she is instantly able to imagine the worst case scenario, ...that defies all physics.
I have to calm Gretchen down:
"It's OK, Gretch, Daddy just spun the tires a bit, ...we're not going to die"
I have to calm Peter down to, ...just not in the same way:
"...No son, I can't really spin out for you."
"No, we aren't going to hit anything, ...Sorry."
... and,
"No son, unfortunately we are not allowed to drive up in the yards either. Sorry bud."
I Love my Boy! He so BOY! I love My Girl! She's so GIRL!
Just like it should be.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
December Prayer Update
“Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, And deep darkness the people;
But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.
The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.”
Isaiah 60:1-3
The first Sunday in Advent we read these verses and talked with our children about Jesus, the Light of the World. We turned out all the lights in the house, and lit one candle, and saw how powerful that light is to put the darkness away. God has shown His light and glory into the deep darkness of the world. Let us not be ashamed of our glorious Savior as we celebrate His birth this month! Our Light has come!
Merry Christmas to you all! It has been a crazy year for us to say the least. At the start of the year we were in Hungary preparing to move back to minister in Ukraine. The plan was to wrap up the school year at the Bible College and be in Ukraine by mid-summer. But in March Elysia began having pain in her kidney area. We had numerous tests done in Hungary but eventually realized we would have to return to the States to see if we could find the cause.
We arrived in Boise in June and began the long slow saga of trying to find the source of the pain. After almost four months of testing, waiting, and a couple of procedures, the doctors have concluded that her kidneys function well, and there is no apparent problem with them. We praise God for that!! The source of her pain remains a mystery however. They feel that part of the pain might be related to scar tissue and inflammation from previous kidney operations and have started her on some meds to see if that can help. They also want to explore some other areas/causes, so we will be meeting with a few other specialists after the first of the year. We are reminded that these are mere tents, and we do “groan!!” But God is victorious, and inwardly we are being renewed daily.
We continue to pray for healing and direction, as all this puts our future direction into question. Our desire is to return to Ukraine, but we need to get some healing or resolution and know all is well before we can head back. The uncertainty can be pretty intense and we often alternate between faith, confusion, rest, and anxiety. The trials have caused us to grow in faith; not always comfortable, but needed, and good and ultimately for His glory. God has really challenged us to hold to Him and trust Him for all, and find our sufficiency and satisfaction in Him alone. He has called us and will use us for His Glory where He wills. …He is LORD, and our times are in His hands. Ps. 31:15
We are so thankful to all of you who pray for us and support us! We are humbled by all God has given to us through you, and how you have loved and supported us. May He receive the glory and honor. We ask you to please pray for us as we will have to make some big decisions based on what we see in the next few months. Pray that we are full of faith, and hear the Lord, and see His hand. Most of all that HE be glorified in and through us!
In the meantime we are trying to be productive for the Kingdom. Ethan has been teaching at the Calvary Chapel School of Ministry here in Boise, teaching a college-age small group, and volunteering his time writing for different ministries of the church. We are blessed to mentor some of the SOM students as well, and have had several opportunities to share about missions and God’s work in Eastern Europe at churches and with different small groups. We have even been able to meet and share with some Ukrainians living here in Boise!
Our kids are doing great. Gretchen and Peter are in a Christian school at our church. They are learning so much in school and with friends, and they are really growing in faith!! Lizzy and Amy are a hoot together and keep Elysia busy at home. We are over most of the reverse culture shock but still miss our lives and ministry in Europe. We are taking advantage of being stateside for Christmas and will be together with family in Utah and Minnesota. The kids are enjoying discovering Christmas in America! A real cultural eye-opener!!
If you would like to keep up on our lives and ministry we maintain a blog with pictures news and updates, and send regular email updates. If you have not received those, that means we do not have your current email. Take a second and drop us a line with your contact info to our address on the prayer card. We would love to keep in touch.
Merry Christmas to you all! God’s Grace, Mercy, and Peace be with you all through the coming year!
The Larsons
Ethan, Elysia, Gretchen, Peter John, Elizabeth, Amy
But the LORD will arise over you, And His glory will be seen upon you.
The Gentiles shall come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your rising.”
Isaiah 60:1-3
The first Sunday in Advent we read these verses and talked with our children about Jesus, the Light of the World. We turned out all the lights in the house, and lit one candle, and saw how powerful that light is to put the darkness away. God has shown His light and glory into the deep darkness of the world. Let us not be ashamed of our glorious Savior as we celebrate His birth this month! Our Light has come!
Merry Christmas to you all! It has been a crazy year for us to say the least. At the start of the year we were in Hungary preparing to move back to minister in Ukraine. The plan was to wrap up the school year at the Bible College and be in Ukraine by mid-summer. But in March Elysia began having pain in her kidney area. We had numerous tests done in Hungary but eventually realized we would have to return to the States to see if we could find the cause.
We arrived in Boise in June and began the long slow saga of trying to find the source of the pain. After almost four months of testing, waiting, and a couple of procedures, the doctors have concluded that her kidneys function well, and there is no apparent problem with them. We praise God for that!! The source of her pain remains a mystery however. They feel that part of the pain might be related to scar tissue and inflammation from previous kidney operations and have started her on some meds to see if that can help. They also want to explore some other areas/causes, so we will be meeting with a few other specialists after the first of the year. We are reminded that these are mere tents, and we do “groan!!” But God is victorious, and inwardly we are being renewed daily.
We continue to pray for healing and direction, as all this puts our future direction into question. Our desire is to return to Ukraine, but we need to get some healing or resolution and know all is well before we can head back. The uncertainty can be pretty intense and we often alternate between faith, confusion, rest, and anxiety. The trials have caused us to grow in faith; not always comfortable, but needed, and good and ultimately for His glory. God has really challenged us to hold to Him and trust Him for all, and find our sufficiency and satisfaction in Him alone. He has called us and will use us for His Glory where He wills. …He is LORD, and our times are in His hands. Ps. 31:15
We are so thankful to all of you who pray for us and support us! We are humbled by all God has given to us through you, and how you have loved and supported us. May He receive the glory and honor. We ask you to please pray for us as we will have to make some big decisions based on what we see in the next few months. Pray that we are full of faith, and hear the Lord, and see His hand. Most of all that HE be glorified in and through us!
In the meantime we are trying to be productive for the Kingdom. Ethan has been teaching at the Calvary Chapel School of Ministry here in Boise, teaching a college-age small group, and volunteering his time writing for different ministries of the church. We are blessed to mentor some of the SOM students as well, and have had several opportunities to share about missions and God’s work in Eastern Europe at churches and with different small groups. We have even been able to meet and share with some Ukrainians living here in Boise!Our kids are doing great. Gretchen and Peter are in a Christian school at our church. They are learning so much in school and with friends, and they are really growing in faith!! Lizzy and Amy are a hoot together and keep Elysia busy at home. We are over most of the reverse culture shock but still miss our lives and ministry in Europe. We are taking advantage of being stateside for Christmas and will be together with family in Utah and Minnesota. The kids are enjoying discovering Christmas in America! A real cultural eye-opener!!
If you would like to keep up on our lives and ministry we maintain a blog with pictures news and updates, and send regular email updates. If you have not received those, that means we do not have your current email. Take a second and drop us a line with your contact info to our address on the prayer card. We would love to keep in touch.
Merry Christmas to you all! God’s Grace, Mercy, and Peace be with you all through the coming year!
The Larsons
Ethan, Elysia, Gretchen, Peter John, Elizabeth, Amy
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Lizzy Directs a Christmas Play
We were sitting at dinner tonight discussing the Christmas play at the Peter and Gretchen's school. Gretch was disappointed to not be "in the play" but merely in the chorus.
Lizzy thought we could make our own play!
Lizzy: "Daddy will be Joseph, and Gretchen will be Mary!"
Elysia: "...and who will Peter play?"
Lizzy: (not missing a beat) "Bob the Builder!"
Elysia: (trying to hold back) "... and what will I be?"
Lizzy: "You will be a princess... and you will be SOOOOOO Beaut-eeful!"
Elysia: "...and what will you be?"
Lizzy: "A Ballerina!!!" she says as she sits there in her pink leotard.
(but of course!!...she dresses like this EVERY day)
Should be quite a production!
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Gingerbread Houses
We made Gingerbread Houses out of graham crackers and leftover halloween candy plus a few gumdrops and candy canes from the store. The kids had a blast. I made a simple frosting with powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, and milk. Then squeezed it out of a plastic bag with a cake decorating "star" tip. This holds the pieces together. Once the frosting dries and stiffens, the house is pretty sturdy. For a while, though, we had to use toothpicks to hold it up. Cheaper than store-bought kits, and a LOT of fun.
Amy making mischief with Peter John's folded laundry. (above)
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