Yes, we're still here....some pics with our latest updates

It's been a long, long time since we've written, but here's an update of some of the things we've been up to:

Minion glasses from "Despicable Me" look great on Peaches

 Peaches had a great time chasing parachutes on her first 4th of July.  One of our nation's newest citizens, she loved the celebration.

 They always keep track of how many parachutes each person has.

 When you have two 14 year old boys who can light all of the fireworks, it means everyone else can just sit back and take it all in.

 Heather took her first attempt at putting rubber bands in Peaches' hair.  It's growing out quickly....and we still have a lot to learn.

 We spent 5 days at Johnson Lake near Lexington, NE with the Nordstrom side of the family.  Here are T-bird and Rye Bread with two of their favorite cousins.  It's always a blast when the four Peanuts (self-proclaimed name that goes way back) get together.

 Is it possible to take a bad picture of Eddie Joe?  He loves to swim!

 The Big Fella had a great time swimming too!

 Momma and Peaches spent a lot of time floating together.  Peaches knows how to chill in the water.

 Peaches and Eddie Joe had a great time swimming together.

 Peaches, Eddie Joe, and The Big Fella - Life doesn't get much better than this.

 Peaches and Eddie Joe had a great time jumping in the lake, over and over and over and over again.

 This girl is a fish!

 Cannonball!

 These two sisters are both fearless when they go tubing.  Sunshine had a great time showing Peaches the ropes.  Then all Peaches would say is, "Faster! Faster!"

 They both loved to get flying and catch some air.

 Peaches is forced to lay beneath the weight of a large man.  There was no way she was going to fall off!

 We had a lot of fun riding together.

 Sunshine had a great time at the lake.  She lives to tube and she cannot be thrown off!

 Sunshine and T-Bird!

 Peaches and Sunshine

 The Big Fella and Sunshine.  Always with the tongue.....???

 Sunshine and Eddie Joe

 The four Peanuts.  This is one of the more "normal" pictures they took.

 The four Peanuts training two young innocent children how to be really weird.

 Now they can do it on their own!  The training is complete.

Momma loves the lake.  But even better is time with her kids.  Here she is with the Big Fella.

I've been gone from blog world for almost two months.  I won't go into all the reasons why, but some include flooding at work, flood preparations at home (we live near the Missouri River), Heather's dad having a recent heart attack, and some other things.  Prior to these challenges, the last year had been filled with blessings beyond anything we've ever experienced.  With the completion of Peaches' adoption and the addition to our house, it was a very full and fun year.  Yet, the last two months have been some of the hardest we've ever faced.  We feel as though we were sauntering together through a park, smiling and laughing, and then out of nowhere, we were hit by a bus.

We trust that God is in control.  We trust that God has a plan for us and that it is good.  We trust that He is in all of this to the same extent that He was in the blessings of last year.  Yet it's hard to trust, hard to know, hard to feel as though He is always near.

Psalm 46 has been a great reminder that "God is our Refuge and Strength, a very present help in trouble.  Therefore, we will not fear."

We hope that everyone's summer is going well and that you are sensing God's nearness and workings in your lives.