A February wrap up

Here is a wrap up of non-school related Morgan happenings for February!

The first weekend in February Gracie and Daddy went to the Father Daughter Promise Ball at church. Gracie looks forward to this date with Daddy all year long.

Ben had a football themed birthday party for his 10th birthday!

On the actual day of his birthday we took all the kids for the first time to a movie theater to see the Lego Batman movie!

Ben got a Pogo-ball from Grandma and Grandpa! Perfect for this active kid, and boy does it bring back memories of my childhood!

 In other news.....Gracie broke the top of her foot near her toes while playing with her brothers. She did not want to wear the protective boot until I convinced her that she would never be able to do pointe ballet on her toes if her foot did not heal properly! She was convinced after that, although it has not slowed her down a bit!

A first of many to come.....

During the first week of August our family had the blessing of serving a small community in eastern Kentucky. Lynch is a former coal mining town in the heart of Appalachia. The coal mine is now closed, leaving the town very poor. It is a community entrenched in a lot of hopelessness and all that brings. Our church partnered with Merizdo ministries in Lynch, KY which is bringing the hope and light of Jesus Christ to that community.

Luke and Ben have been interested in participating in a mission trip for some time. It was a huge blessing that they were able to go and serve alongside Jeff. It is a blessing to be a parent who teaches their children about God's love for people, and then gets to watch as their children act it out! It was very moving to watch how much it impacted younger siblings as well. The younger ones prayed every day for the team, and loved hearing about the stories and answered prayers when they returned home.

Early morning send off!!

Ben on the Kentucky/Virginia line!

 

Jeff helped the team with several construction projects. The team was able to pour concrete, replace doors, and even help one family fix some leaking windows. One huge answer to prayer involved a local man with a backhoe. The way the construction project was set up the team was a bit worried about how long it would take to wheelbarrow in all the concrete. A local man "just happened" to drive by with a backhoe and agreed to help them, cutting down the project time exponentially! Of course we know that was God at work, not coincidence!

Luke and Ben loved helping out with the construction projects when they were not involved with other areas of service.

 

The team also did a backyard Bible club for local kids.

Luke and Ben were a big hit with all the kids! They also participated in visiting widows and were loved there too!

Jeff and Luke helped serve Jesus by mucking out some horse stables and caring for horses. The local ministry there has stables that they use to reach out to the community. Luke was in his element of course!

Black Mountain is the highest point in Kentucky!

  

Virginia/Kentucky line, on the way home!

 

Eleven years, and a much overdo getaway!

This month we celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary! We had intended to try to getaway for our 10th anniversary, but timing did not work out. This year we were so grateful that Jeff's Mom and our niece Kaylin were able to come and take care of our crew so that we could get away together. This is our first time away from the kids since before Gracie was born! We visited Tennessee, which was a first time in that state for both of us! Our cabin was adorable and we had a wonderful time exploring the area. We are so grateful for eleven years of life together with all the joy and struggles faced as a team!

Daddy/Dauger Promise Ball

In February Jeff was able to take Gracie to her first ball! They had a great time, and Gracie absolutely loved being able to spend one-on-one time with Daddy!

Gracie did not want to dance. She said she only does ballet, not "silly dancing!"

They had a great time with all the other dads and daughters.