JAWS End of Season

We started the Jewell Athletic WorkShop (JAWS) in January, but the idea was around for some time before that. The homeschool sports program in Florida that the kids participated in, and for which John worked part time for two years, inspired JAWS. After moving to Texas and realizing the hole it left in our family to leave that part of our routine behind, we sought to reproduce the experience on a small scale in our area. Not only did we see it as a great opportunity for recreation and friendship building, but we also believed it had the potential to be a perfect outreach ministry--something that is a consideration in most of our undertakings. We made T-shirts, invested in basic sports equipment, and printed flyers welcoming the community at large--not just the homeschoolers. The local community center allowed us to put up a sign and use their property for the kickoff session.

We charged the minimum to cover our expenses if a certain number of families registered. Just enough families signed up but even the small amount we charged (just $5 an hour, or less for more kids in the same family) was too much for some of them, so we raised several scholarships by word of mouth. We had enough of a turnout that we needed help coaching, so we hired a few like-minded individuals who were willing to work for peanuts to help get JAWS off the ground. In the end, we broke even financially. But there is much more to the first semester of JAWS than a financial report.

Because we quickly outgrew the community center within the first few weeks, we moved to the public park. An elderly man who was there every weekend was especially glad to meet us. His granddaughter lived with him most of the time because, as he puts it, "her parents are always fighting." I helped him fill out the registration form because he doesn't read or write. Even though JAWS is a three-hour, drop-off program, he stayed the whole time and helped out by carrying equipment and being available for odd jobs. Another mom told us her daughter with Down's Syndrome has no other opportunities for structured group play that are affordable or within driving distance. The kids were very encouraging and helpful to her, an attitude we stress above competition. Though we had a couple families sneer at the idea of sportsmanship and community above competition and winning, the motto on our sign "Like Sports, Love Kids" was widely embraced. It was a place for the kids who fall somewhere between athlete and special olympics. Although we did have some of each.

Our last session for this school year was in May. We wrapped it up with a barbecue at the park.

I can't say JAWS was wildly successful in terms of popularity or profit, but the kids and parents who were involved on a weekly basis would, I think, defend its success in other terms. Some moms had a little time to themselves while others were happy to see their children make some friends. There were kids who needed a positive male role model and a few who just needed the exercise. John and I are thankful that our kids had sports and playtime with their peers each week and that we had several opportunities to present the gospel and minister to families in general. I have a Bible study going right now with two of the moms from JAWS.

I don't know if we'll start JAWS up in the fall. I suppose if there's enough interest we will. As it stands now, we consider it a blessing that we will never forget. We are thankful to those of you who donated your time and resources in coaching, scholarships, equipment, moral support and prayers. Most of all, thank you to those of you who entrusted your children to our care.



"My hope still is to leave the world a bit better than when I got here." 
Jim Henson
American Puppeteer

Easter Camping

We camped with some friends for Easter this year. More specifically, we went to Yogi Bear's Jellystone campground. 

The last time John and I camped was before we had kids. We didn't have any gear so we bought a tent and borrowed everything else. Our friends really knew what they were doing. They set up this condo:

While we popped this little number up across the tracks:

It's probably a great tent if you don't put it in a low spot just before a major storm. (Yes, we did that and it filled with water and collapsed on us.)

There was fishing,

exploring,

campfire fun,

and even relays.

But this may have been the all time favorite among the kids.

Oh sure, Ben looks a bit concerned, but with good reason. Safety didn't seem to be the driver's top priority.

Here's the only proof that I was there:

And the best proof that the kids had a great time:

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the egg hunt. It was Easter, after all. Between the egg hunt that the campground hosted and the one we did the next morning, there was plenty of ooey gooey goodness to go around.

The best part of the weekend was the blessing of spending Easter among spiritual family--enjoying God's creation and our friendship together. How wonderful it is to have children who understand that Easter is truly about the gift God has given us in His Son's sacrifice!

Gardening Class

Spring is here and I wanted to, not only take advantage of the nice weather and longer days, but also help others to do the same, so I held a gardening class at the local community center. John and I picked up the materials for a raised bed and I talked this group of women through the whole process of building and planting a square foot garden. 

They truly did almost all of the work and it turned out beautifully.

It was a lot of fun and beautified the property at the same time. There was talk of getting together again to build some more raised beds, among other projects, and to turn this into a garden club. I would like that because dirt makes me happy. This nice lady agrees.

Let me know if you're local and want to participate.

Ben's Fourth Birthday

We thought long and hard about how to celebrate Ben's birthday. Then we asked him what he wanted to do and he made it easy. He just wanted to play with the JAWS kids.  

So that's what he did.

Of course, it's always great when the siblings have as much fun as the birthday boy. Here's Andy with one of his new friends after I asked them to pause for a picture:

And Jonah with his new friend (they weren't quite as chummy for the photo shoot):

Ben got some great presents, and the "chicken candy machine" was his favorite.

The other thing Ben said he wanted was a watermelon and spiky hair. He got both.

When your dad runs a sports program, this is your party hat:

 And then there were hot dogs and cupcakes.

Ben was about as exhausted as I've ever seen him on the way home. He said, "I really had a great time and I like all my presents." Then he was out. 

Happy birthday, my little firecracker!

Lizards, Lizards Everywhere!

Last December Jonah got two bearded dragon lizards for Christmas. When we moved to Texas, we had them shipped to meet us when we arrived. They've been very good pets for over a year now so we decided to see if we could make more and share the joy. Well, it worked and we've been watching eggs hatch all week long. Who knew one female lizard could lay over 50 eggs? And what a great homeschool science project!

They're very small.

 And quite pretty.

 We have high hopes for all of them because their father is very smart.

By-the-way, if you're interested in buying one, please let us know. I'll be posting an ad on Craigslist soon. As much as we would like to, we simply can't keep them all. Like I said, we want to share the joy.

JAWS, Our First Month

Our Visit from Natal...and Self-Evaluation

Recently we were blessed with a visit from our friend who lives in Natal, Brazil--that's where we lived when Ben was born. Cris is an American who started out teaching English there with Let's Start Talking (LST) and ended up staying as a full-time missionary. She came through our neck of the woods on furlough. We had lunch and hung out all afternoon talking about life, much like we did in Brazil. 

We learned some things about our time in Natal through our conversation with Cris. For one thing, even though we lived in the same city and went to the same church for eighteen months, she never quite understood what happened with my pregnancy with Ben and why we left Natal. Because that was due in large part to our lack of communication, I'm guessing you don't understand it either, so allow me to put it in a nutshell.

I had a liver condition called cholestasis of pregnancy which caused me to itch until I scratched my skin off in certain places. I was in so much pain physically and emotionally that I wasn't at church much, which may be why nobody knew what I was going through. More importantly, the condition endangered Ben's life to the point that we had to induce labor a couple of weeks early. After he was born, he was severely jaundiced and we had a very tough time getting him the medical attention he needed. Despite the church doing all they knew to help us, I was depressed and went on a prayer campaign asking God to get me out of what felt like a pot of water that was slowly approaching a boil. He did that when we got a phone call two days before we were scheduled to leave for furlough. The call was from a man representing a small Brazilian church plant effort just north of Miami. They were looking for an American missionary in Brazil who might be willing to move to Florida to work with their church. It just so happened we were going to be minutes from them during our first stop on furlough--yes, really. As it turned out, we moved to Florida soon after that furlough and that meeting. It was an answer to my prayers.

Maybe it was short-sighted on my part to pray the way I did. Maybe it was faithless or weak. I'm willing to admit I'm quite imperfect. But I believe God worked it out to his advantage. We went to Florida with every intention of working with an existing Brazilian church but ended up with a house church, all in English. We made lots of mistakes and could have done much better, but we do have six new brothers and sisters in Christ as a result of our time in Florida. Also, being in the States put us in a much better position to come to Texas when my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's.

Cris was happy to report that the church in Natal is doing very well and that part of that success can be directly attributed to some of the people John baptized and the seeds of evangelism that he planted. While I was busy being sick, John was busy teaching people about Jesus. I have a hunch Satan wasn't happy about that and had something to do with my condition and state of mind. So, if you never quite knew the real story behind how we got from Natal to Texas, I hope this helps. Cris said it helped her. Obviously, there's a lot more to it, but I won't bore you with all the details--unless you ask.

Here's a link to the blog Cris writes about her work in Natal: http://crisinbrazil.blogspot.com. Take a minute to check it out and leave her a comment. Encouragement is a valuable commodity to a missionary.