One of the best parts of our summer

We had such a full summer, full of learning and work and meeting people from all over the place!

At first, we were a little wary of west coasters....and also their shoes.

But actually we had lots in common.

We all like eating.

We all wash dishes.

We all love singing about the Lord!

(Daddy plays bass.)

And now we feel just like family....and we are!

Daniel met the grandbaby of the folks who arranged the first creation science conference our family ever attended...back in Sacramento in the '90s!  But he was unable to get her autograph.

Another sweet family from the land of our ancestral heritage, excited about the Lord, his Word and his wondrous works!

We met these sweet sisters at the local laundromat.  They live in town but had never known much about the 7Wonders Museum until we showed up on their laundry day with 7 full hampers, and 5 full laundry baskets.  It just demanded an explanation.

This great Canadian family came for a tour and gladly obliged our requests for them to say "again" again and again!  More power to them!

Another family from the pacific northwest, but new to Mount St Helens.

We were happy to meet in person this local, young family who came for a tour and stayed for dinner and devotions.

We all found it fantastic to know that even though we live thousands of miles apart, with different circumstances and struggles, the Lord is showing us many of the same things in His Word.

We are thankful for the wonderful blessings the Lord gave us through fellowship with His people who crossed our path this summer! 

And here we are....

...at the 7Wonders Museum in Silverlake, Washington.  

We were met with a huge meal prepared by our hosts, Lloyd and Doris.  They have been wonderful and feel like family already.  They are letting us take over their house, and they are staying in a vacation rental nearby while we learn the ropes.   

So, we are going on four weeks here... 

four full weeks of....

Cooking.

Eating.

Working.

Looking.

Learning.

More looking.

Sharing.

Hiking.

Meeting.

Singing.

Weeding.

Spreading.

Listening.

Rearranging.

Shopping.

Helping.

Missing.

And just relaxing.

Getting the boot(s)

We are in the midst of preparing for our big summer trip!  Sunday, Lord willing, we leave for the land of beef and cheese (Wisconsin), for a week of camping and our favorite homeschool conference.  

From there, we will bop west across North America until we get to Silverlake, Washington, the veritable doormat of Mount St Helens, and home to the 7Wonders Creation Museum.  We will be helping our dear friends, Lloyd and Doris Anderson, and learning how they do what they do.

What do they do?  They educate folks on the many geologic features which were almost instantaneously created during Mount St Helens' eruptions and their aftermath.  (That's why they call it the "7Wonders"!)   They also mow the lawn, clean the toilets, vacuum the floors, welcome groups to their visitor center, give lectures, feed birds, sell books and videos, and lead the occasional tour and hike.

So we have finished procuring enough boots to shod all the Klein feet.

And we are breaking them in, to boot!

And we have found a great way to stow them when not in use!

We are counting down the hours with no little amount of excitement.  We are also getting ready to start seriously missing our St Louis friends...waaaaaahh!!!