Joy

Sunday, November 13, 2016

Autumn Apples


 It's that time of year again!  
 
 The time when we make caramel apples and try to get a good picture of everybody eating them - which, if you are new to my blog, is impossible.
 This was Jack's first taste of caramel apples. 
  
He loved them!
   
But only having two bottom teeth put him at a disadvantage.
 What nice sisters he has to share with him. 

That's it!  This is the last time a new member is added to the Autumn Apples picture tradition.





Sunday, November 6, 2016

Compassion Walk

This past weekend Josh was away with the youth group and it just so happened to fall on the same weekend that my mom had asked us to come over to do the Compassion Walk with their church.

So while Josh was away we spent the night at my parents' and the next morning headed to Freestone park for the walk. 

It was really neat and the girls loved it! 
Before the walk there was live music, a bounce house and booths.

The walk was only a mile and a half with 6 interactive stations.  At each station you watched a video that went along with it.  The videos followed a boy in India, his name was Sandeep and he talked about the lack of food and how sometimes he had to look through piles of trash to find food.  There were visuals of what the average American child eats a day and what children in poverty eat.  It was slightly ironic that we were slamming down free donuts and popcorn while learning about people in poverty.
  
The second station talked about home size across the world,

  Next was the water station. 
 
 The girls had to haul water up the hill.
 

At the next station Sandeep talked about finding money on the street and had to choose if he should give it to his parents so they would not be kicked out of their house, food, or medicine for his mother (who was sick from drinking the water) 
  
Everyone got a coin and had to choose where to spend it.   Claire went back and forth on this one but ultimately they all decided to buy food. 

Then last two stations were about Sandeep becoming a Compassion sponsored child when he was 6 and how he was given hope. 
 
 We were told there was a special surprise and the end and it was that Sandeep was there!  He talked to everyone who wanted to ask him questions. ( he is in college now)

Afterward the girls bounced 
 
and got their faces painted
 
 and of course Claire made a friend.

Jack was sick and not feeling good but he liked being outside and managed a few happy moments throughout the morning.
He still looks miserable though.

This was the biggest Compassion walk there has ever been, with the most money raised.  Claire got the most out of it but the younger two still had a great time. It was definitely worth while!