Quick Note

I'm at the library with no way to upload pictures so you'll just have to trust me when I way we've arrived safely and are having a wonderful time. As a family we've decided that even if we stay within the 4 walls of the house the whole time we're together, we'll still be happy. It's just so great to walk through rooms full of people that we care for so much and haven't seen in so long!
PS - We have plans for lobster later this week=)

Half way there!

Here is the first picture taken when our adventure began in the wee hours of Friday morning... Ok, some of us don't see 6 am very often, so it was early for us! We got on the road and now, 4 states and 22 hours later, we are halfway=)
This was another common scene over the last couple of days...Alana became very attached to our map and did everything from showing Jesse 'right where we were', to playing 'music' with a pen on the spiral bound edges of the book, it was lovely=)
The highlight all throughout our days, for the kids, is whenever we stopped to get gas - they manage to find some entertaining activity for their 10 minutes of freedom, of course that is after the mandatory potty break.
The kids assured me it was only slightly damp at the bottom of the hill. =)
What I needed here was a video camera, not just a regular one! Let's just say that this picture was taken after several unsuccessful attempts by Monica to get herself up onto the 'dinosaurs' rather round, slippery rump=)
The first state we came to was Iowa and we missed the welcome sign so I just took a picture of the first "Iowa-looking thing" we came across....I didn't realize at the time it was probably a casino!
Next came Illinois whose border at this location is the Mississippi river, which we were driving over at the point of this picture.
Indiana didn't seem to even have one - all of a sudden we noticed the exit numbers changed so theirs must have been pretty lame....and here's when we made it into 'Oh', I mean, Ohio!
Another neat place we drove past=) (nice windshield)
And finally Athens Bible Church - it was beautiful! The weather was like a warm spring day and everything was so GREEN and flowering. I forgot how pretty spring can be=) We had a great day at the church, Matthew spoke both in the am and pm services. The people were a true joy to spend time with and we've had a wonderful host, Dave Dupler, who has opened his home for us during this little stop.

It's been a good break from the vehicle but Monday we hit the road again....10 hours tomorrow and 7 more on Tuesday, Lord willing! Things have truly gone well, so far. I could complain about certain sore body parts but overall it has been uneventful and the kids have been wonderful - we have much to be grateful for!

BIG DAY!!!

Well, the trailer is loaded and we are about to head out the driveway....Maine here we come, but not until after we've been through Minnesota, Iowa, spend the night in Illinois, Indiana, spend two nights in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, spend a night in New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire....I think I got that right. But anyway, we're almost on our way=) Today is our longest day with an anticipated 12 to 13 hours of driving, except anticipated makes it sound like were looking forward to it...strike that, change it to expected 12 to 13 hours...that's better.

But the main reason this is a big day is because as of noon (Pacific Coast time) my brother, Kendrick, will have graduated from the Marine Corps boot camp in San Diego, California. We are SOOO PROUD of him and so grateful to the Lord for getting him through this rigorous time, and using him as a light in the midst of it all. Yesterday the highlight of my day was to get to spend about 7 minutes on the phone with him as he had 5 hours of on-base privileges when my parents, my sister, and Jenna were there with him. Of course he stood still while he was talking since all Marines know that it is rude to walk around talking on the phone....?!

Anyway, we are excited for this day to have finally arrived and I hope to be able to keep you updated as to our travels but we'll see how that goes. I may not always have Internet access, or I may just be having to much stinking fun to sit down and blog about it=)

AWANA and stuff

Last night was our kids last night in Awana - Alana is in Cubbies, Logan in Sparkies, Monica helps with the T & T's, and Zach is part of middle school youth group. The program continues for another 3 weeks but we are leaving so they were kind enough to wrap things up for our family. Alana was given a little 'Cubby Bear Award' for finishing her first book (or, as she adamantly calls it, her reward).

Nice job, little sweetie!Logan was also given an Award, the highest one a Sparky can receive, which is given to the clubber who completes all three of the Sparky books. The cool thing is that the kids are usually is Sparkies for kindergarten, first, and second grade - or three years. Logan, however, was only in it for two since he skipped kindergarten. Early on in the first year of Sparkies he saw another boy in our church receive the Timothy Award, which is WAY up there in Awana world, and he asked how he could get that. I explained how he could work his way up to it, starting with the Sparkies Plaque...ever since then it's been his goal and I'm so glad that he was able to complete it. BUT MOST OF ALL, I'm sooo thankful for the many, many verses that are now etched into his mind - and as his parents we can only pray that they will also remain in his heart, bringing about a change in his life and a love for his Saviour.

Good Job, Logan! You did it!

In line with the other Sparkies

Being given the award by his leader, Mrs. Lim.The happy little clubber!And here it is, already on the wall, with the first book award and the second book award, hanging with it.

And now for the 'stuff' part of the post....several times I've mentioned our trip to Maine without ever doing a good job of explaining it. I'll do that now - since I have nothing better to do on the day before our 5 week, 2,400 mile one way, trip across the country with a family of seven....! Anyway - we are headed back to Maine on a multi-purpose trip. One main reason being, we moved out here almost 6 years ago and haven't been back since. Much of our family back in Maine have never met Alana and Jesse, who were both born out here in SD. The first weekend we are there will be a family reunion with the whole Rozelle family, which is my side, the third weekend we are there is the Chamberland family reunion - so, needless to say, we are SUPER excited about those two things!

The other purpose of the trip is to speak in 8 different churches over the course of the 5 Sundays that we're on the road. Our desire is multi-faceted in this as well; we want to spread awareness of Nehemiah Teams International, we want to be able to make more contacts among people who could be potential team members on future trips, and we also would like to be able to raise some prayer and financial support for our family. This is also an exciting part of the trip, but one which we are a little bit more apprehensive about. Pray with us, please=) We want to be a good representation of NTI, but most of all, a good representation of our LORD. Along these lines, we really want to thank our home church of Calvary Baptist for their love, prayers, and support. It's so nice to know they are behind us and will keep us covered in prayer during the many days ahead. Thank you!

Goodbye to my friend

Well, today is a sad day in the Chamberland house. George is gone. My puppy that I've had for 8 years, almost my whole married life, was put down this morning. He had been deteriorating a lot over the past several months (as I've posted before) and, although we knew the day was coming, we were dreading it just the same.George definitely had his issues, I've never - and I mean NEVER - seen or heard of another dog that was as good an escape artist as George. He got out of more cages, off of more chains, through more doors, than any one dog should be able to. He sacrificed teeth and bit through electrical wires...all to get out of where ever we had enclosed him. All that work just so he could go sit on the porch and wait for us to get home, desperate to be with us.But, just the same, he was ours from when he was an adorable little puppy and we loved him. He was a year older than Logan and has put up with babies, not his favorite thing; with cats, not his favorite until he realized it was a new source of entertainment; and with another dog, who he tolerated as long as she kept her place. Here he is about 2 1/2 years ago with Logan and Alana. He was always there to keep me company when Matthew was gone, he scared the JW's when they came to the door, he was even more protective of me when I was expecting, and he just had a way of understanding when something was wrong. I miss my Georgie. So, if any of you are rolling your eyes, then you don't understand - but if some of you out there are nodding your head in sympathy then maybe you've been where I am today....a sad little girl who misses her puppy=( Shoot, now I'm crying again!

For the grandparents

Here are a few more pictures, specifically for the grandparents, of Logan enjoying his birthday presents. Below he's opening up his oh-so-cool Adidas watch from Grammy and Grampy. He even had to stop the present opening just so he could have Daddy help him put it on. We now hear the time on a very regular basis, right to the exact minute=) And then here's the present he bought with the help of some birthday money from Gramma and Grampa. He picked out a set of two nerf guns, with all the gear included, ready to engage in one-on-one combat. You can see who the 'enemy' is in these pictures=)

"Thank you for the birthday presents. I can't wait to see you all in Maine, soon!"

Love, Logan

Next comes the gentleman

Well, it turns out today is a good day to post about Zachery=) Here are his annual school pictures in which, as you can see, he looks like quite the handsome gentleman. Zach is finishing up 8th grade and after the summer break will be an official high schooler! He has grown in many ways over the past year and we'd pick him over any other 13 year old out there=) Zach, we're so glad to see some of the changes that the Lord is bringing about in your life - keep choosing right!And now for a not so pretty side of Zach....This evening our family headed outside to do some yard work and the typical spring clean up that is needed outside. Along with that we are amidst trip preparations as we get ready to leave for Maine on Friday. Well, after moving a piece of plywood, Zach turned to walk away when the sheet of plywood fell over and scraped down the whole back of his leg - from knee to ankle. It was super painful and very nasty looking....as you can see it peeled off every layer of skin and left it red and raw. He did manage somewhat of a smile when I pulled out the camera=) (nice socks)

As of right now he's a little stiff as far as mobility goes - but I put on a layer of a natural antibiotic-type ointment, laid some sterile gauze pads on top of it, then wrapped it up with some rolled gauze, and gave him something for the pain. He's a trooper and went back outside, hobbling around and helping get the yard work done. I told you he's growing up=)

The Birthday Boy!

And now for the pictures of Logan, I chose his next because TODAY IS HIS BIRTHDAY!! My little Logan Drew is actually seven years old! Last night we had a birthday party for him with some of our friends. I'm not a real good, creative, party planner so our usual birthday involved having uncles Chad and Kendrick over for a meal. This time however, we really enjoyed having Tod and Tarin come instead - not to mention that Logan got to have his friend, Damon, stay the night=)Our whole week had been pretty chaotic and as a result of that there was no homemade birthday cake or a fancy meal to celebrate. Instead it was pizza and some candles in the strawberry shortcake....basically Matthew and I got to go away on a free overnight trip to Rapid and didn't get back until after lunch, so my usual day-long party preparation time was cut short and we stuck to quick and easy! Logan didn't seem to mind=) Here are some pictures from the party last night.

Here he is with his 7 candles!

And his friend Damon!

At present opening time! It was actually hard to get many pictures since there were several other interested parties that kept creeping in front of the camera!

Popping the balloons with candy inside them....oh wait, never mind, I forgot to take pictures of that.

And Monica's face painting booth=)

The girls...

The big boys...And the little boys...

Happy Birthday, Logan! Love you bunches - keep learning and growing and turning into the godly young man your Daddy and I pray for you to be! And I'll leave you with a special video!

Grandparents, stay tune for another post specifically for YOU=)

Miss Monica!

Last week I had pictures done for Monica, Zach, and Logan. I will post them over the next few days and I'm going to start with Monica....ladies first! But there's another reason to mention her now - tomorrow morning, at 8am sharp, she'll be headed into Hot Springs to take the ACT. She is currently a junior, which means that in the fall of next year she will head to college! Shocking, I know!! But I'm sure she would appreciate your prayers to help calm her nerves and help her think clearly so she can do her very best on this big test. She was scheduled to take it 2 weeks ago but we had a big storm and it was rescheduled.

Here she is...all grown up, well, almost=)

We're proud of you and excited to watch you turn into a young lady who is ready and willing to serve the Lord in all that you do. Thank you so much for all you do to help keep this 'orphanage' in working order=)

The Crucible

Today, and over the course of the next few days, I would ask that you take some time to pray specifically for my brother, Kendrick. He has less than two weeks to go until he graduates from boot camp. However, while he is on the downhill side and the days are quickly ticking by, the hardest week of all is facing him even as I write this.

As a recruit he must face, and endure, the Crucible before he can earn the right to be called a Marine. Today he will be going through the gas chamber and then sometime in the early hours on Tuesday morning the Crucible will begin. Here is the description directly from the Marine Corps website...."54 continuous hours of physical and mental challenges." That is not a typo, it is indeed 54 hours back to back of maneuvers and exercises requiring all the skill they've been taught over the previous 10 weeks - from teamwork, to leadership, to endurance. They are given minimal rations, minimal sleep (as in a couple of hours total) and often start out with a 20 mile hump (a hike/jog with their full gear which is 65 pounds+). Up to this point in time they are just recruits, but upon the completion of the Crucible they will earn the title of The Few, The Proud...The Marines. At the end here's our best guess at what will happen - when their body has reached its physical and mental limits they will go on an uphill hump for six miles, go two more miles downhill, and then walk directly out onto the parade grounds, get into formation, receive their Eagle, Globe, and Anchor, and be called Marines for the first time. A week later, on April 24th, Kendrick will graduate from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego, California.

He has made it this far, he has been strengthened by our prayers and letters of encouragement, he has been a testimony to those around him - so please hold him up in prayer once again this week. Pray that he will finish strong!

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

The news is out and I can now officially say loud and clear to one and all - congratulations! We love you two and are SO excited to see what these next few years hold in store for you both. May you grow more in love with the Lord and with each other as the days go by.


Helaine Rozelle and Phillip DeMarte

Engaged April 4th, 2009

To the Joker....

Someone out there thinks they're funny!!! Today we found an 'anonymous' donation in the front seat of Matthew's truck - a bag full of packing peanuts with Jesse and Alana's name on it. I'm still not laughing....

PS - We know who you are and where you live!!!!

Coffee, Ants, and Packing Peanuts

A couple weeks ago ants overtook our coffee pot....they were inside it in areas we couldn't even get to and after Matthew took it apart and put it back together we still were finding ants in the coffee....nice, huh? So, since we have semi-solved the ant problem, we ordered a new coffee pot. You know the trick, order two kinds of coffee and get a coffee pot free....

Anyway - all that to say that it arrived yesterday amidst a nest of packing peanuts. Alana and Jesse could not refuse....while Matthew and I sat peacefully sipping tea out on the deck in the sunshine this is what ensued inside. I was not, and am still not, amused!

A week in Review

Since I haven't posted in a week, and don't have any one specific thing to write about right now, I thought I'd just go over this past week of events and fill you in. It hasn't been a real busy, crazy week, but neither has it been uneventful....are there ever any uneventful weeks at our house? I think not! =)

Tuesday was the busiest day for me by far. I had several errands to run in Hot Springs in the morning - mostly banking items on behalf of both Chad and Kendrick, as well as Matthew. While I did that, Monica handled things here at home, including doing her school work, supervising Logan's school work, and keeping an eye on Alana and Jesse. Zach went to work with Matthew that day. Right after lunch we had to go to Rapid City and run several errands up there. Thanks again for the Lord's provision and being able to purchase some necessary items=) The main reason for our trip was a dentist appointment for Monica which was the last thing on our to do list. I sat in the truck with the little 3 while we waited for her....I watched the time tick by....30 minutes was what I was hoping for, 40 creeped by, 45, 50, 55! Finally we were able to head home! I pulled in the drive way at about 6:10, rushed to get the kids and groceries out of the truck, said "Hi" and "Bye" to Matthew, and left at about 6:20 on the 15 minute trip BACK into town for my 6:30 ladies Bible study.....AHH! I realize many of you have days like this all the time, but it just seems to take longer to do everything the higher quota of car seats you have in your vehicle!

Here are some leftover face-painting pictures from last Monday....

Wednesday was April Fool's Day...a big event at the Chamberland household. Honestly - it was a little annoying. I received several in-house phone calls that each time I would answer a certain blond teenager would burst out into hilarious laughter, I received a note saying a certain other teenager had run away and then heard pre-recorded cries for help coming from a hidden speaker in the pantry....A certain 6-year old played a prank on his father when he replaced the last of the milk in the jug with water...sigh...I'm glad 04-01-09 is behind us=) That evening was also church and since Matthew got home late from work and Alana was still sick that day, we stayed home from prayer meeting and sent the pranksters in to AWANA. We had a nice relaxing evening just the 4 of us and even had nice enough weather to go out for a walk.

And this face just seemed to go with the April Fools theme....
Thursday was one of those days that you use to recover from earlier on in the week. Alana was finally better and I had no need to go anywhere so I stayed home and pretended to get caught up on chores, laundry, etc. I think the biggest accomplishment was making a batch of homemade rolls to have for sloppy joes that evening - they were sooo good! No, wait! That wasn't the biggest accomplishment of the day....Matthew and I were collecting all the things we needed to have with us for a meeting I was going to have this week with a very willing, while very busy, Holly Friesen. She is a missionary in our church who is here finishing up her Nurse Practitioner degree while raising the rest of her support to go to the Ukraine. She had agreed to help us on our long quest for a prayer card. A while ago Tarin, my friend in Custer, took some GREAT pictures of our family. She really knows what she's doing with her camera and we had some beautiful shots....the down side was we had 7 people which greatly diminishes your chances of getting them ALL looking in the right direction and making the right face all at the right time! But I'm rambling - what I was going to say is Matthew found a program and was able to figure out lots of things and actually come up with some that we were both pleased with! SO, we actually have a prayer card pretty much ready to be printed! I will post more on that at another time.

Friday Monica and I were the ones with the busy schedule. Matthew, thankfully, was able to stay home for a while in the morning while she and I headed into town. We each had to get our licenses updated. She was at the point of being able to go from her 'restricted' one to a regular 'under 21' license. All she had to do was take the vision test and she was done, which she was able to pass without her glasses as her vision has improved over the past year! Mine, on the other hand, was a bit more interesting=) Several weeks ago Matthew was stopped and given a ticket for an expired license...I admit, I gloated a bit since I'd actually reminded him earlier on in the year that his expired on his birthday (last January 19th) but he hadn't checked it. Well, if I was a betting woman, I would have bet big $ on the fact that mine expired on my birthday later this year in November. I was wrong! As it turns our mine was exactly 5 months overdue which meant I had to re-take the written test....thankfully, I passed=)

And here's Monica with another one of her recent accomplishments....

Saturday we woke up to a blizzard and an early morning phone call - my favorite! The people in charge of the ACT testing called to say that the test had been canceled. Monica was scheduled for it a while ago and I was preparing to post something about it on that day, but I think it will take place next week - I'm sure she'd appreciate your prayers! And now back to the weather. It was really cold and really windy which made for a loooong day inside. We were all going a little stir crazy by lunchtime and kept scolding ourselves over and over for being such wimps after one day of being stuck inside. We played games, watched a movie (The Railway Children) all together, I made cookies, some of the kids did crafts, and the day dragged on....Surprisingly, the ones that seemed the least affected were the youngest two that are used to days on end with the same routine of being here at home and entertaining themselves. It was the older 2 boys that were chomping at the bit! Finally, late afternoon the winds settled a bit and Zach convinced Logan to go outside. They actually had lots of fun in the huge drifts and came in every once in a while for a warm drink, only to head back out again! Alana, who is quite adept at entertaining herself, found a warmer activity - reading the phone book....=) She actually did this and sang along, as well.
Sunday was quite different than our usual ones. We left the house shortly after 8 am and returned eight hours later just after 4 pm - the kids were absolutely wiped out. We had the regular morning services, followed by a potluck, followed by a follow up meeting to a church assessment that has been taking place over the last few weeks (just for us all to have a bit of a gauge as to where we are at as a church body), and then I had choir practice for next Easter Sunday. Monica watched several kids during the meeting and, for a change, she said that our youngest three were the best behaved of all=) That makes my mother's heart smile...and sigh in relief! Once we finally got home we enjoyed a lazy evening together and then sent the youngest three to bed early while Monica went back into town for youth group and Zach stayed up late and watched a movie with Daddy. And thus the week started all over again....

And for those of you who hung in this long to read my ramblings, I'll share a great story of what has happened so far today. Jesse was in the chair at the breakfast table and he put his foot down between the seat and the back of the chair and I COULD NOT get it out. He started to cry and get a little panicky...any time I'd move it or try and pull it out he'd really cry, like it hurt quite a bit. So, finally I called Matthew, who fortunately is at work here in Buffalo Gap, and he came home. After unscrewing the padded seat bottom and removing that from the chair his foot slid right out! He was so happy - he stood right at his Daddy's side as the chair was put back together. Finally he just hugged his leg, looked up at him, and said "You're my friend, Daddy!"