Happy New Year Good-bye 2015

Saying Hello to Friends and Family!

Here is a little about us! Tim is most proud of his little black box and selling a few. Business has improved greatly this past year. Char is happily enjoying family and learning to adapt to constant changing work environment. Our highlights include new grandson, helping our daughter move and our backpacking trip (scroll down for pics). We had a grand family reunion to celebrate my 60th birthday.

Now children reporting in...from Jerrol and Lauren:

Lauren is proud of finishing Ellison's Christmas stocking in time for Christmas this year. It took me about 40 hours to finish (there were a lot of details!) I'm also proud of myself for being half way finished with my MA in Clinical Psychology at Azusa Pacific University; only two more years to go! Photos, top left to right: We had a very special opportunity to dine at Club 33 in Disneyland -- a bucket list item for Lauren!; we were able to go to Disneyland with Bryant and Rachel and family to celebrate Annabelle's 4th birthday. Middle, left to right: my sweet boy, Ellison; a great craft Sianna made at school; Ellison's handmade felt Christmas stocking. Bottom left to right: Sianna's birthday present for her 5th birthday in October was a trip to Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique where she had a princess makeover (she chose Elsa from Frozen); Sianna and Annabelle at Sianna's 5th birthday party (they are the bestest little friends!).

Jerrol is proud of learning to grow his own food in his garden at his mother-in-law's house and his weightlifting accomplishments (he can bench press 225 lbs, squat 265 lbs, and deadlift 325 lbs).

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Rachel and Bryant reporting in:

Rachel says, "I am proud of myself for making the decision to change myself. To become the person I want to be. Also that in May, marked one whole year of being a mommy of two.
This year has been unbelievably hard but I'm happy to have the good memories and to learn and grow from the unhappy."
My picture (collage) contains my favorite pictures of the year. All the pictures contain my family, because they are the reason for me to get up in the morning and keep pushing forward.

From Dace:

I am proud of our growing family and the children we are raising

From Charis:

This past year has been full of changes: having a second child, moving to Colorado, becoming a full time stay at home momma, acclimating to cold & snow... we are adapting and thriving in what God has done in our lives! 

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2015 Thanksgiving

Rae Lake Loops 2015

Our adventure to Kings Canyon and hike out of Road's End (yes the end of the road) took us on the most unique and challenging backpacking trip of a lifetime.

Tim picked this trail and decided we should try a lollipop trail. ( a loop) These means you keep your backpack on every day. The Rae Lakes Loop is a very popular track in the Sierras. What Tim didn't notice is the elevation start and the elevation at the top of the pass. On our second day (already committed) we looked at the map and did the math. If we started at 5,000 feet and the pass was almost at 12,000 feet, we would have 7,000 feet of elevation gain. It took us 5 days to cover the 40 mile journey and yes we did it! Yes we are amazed at ourselves. Hiking 8 miles a day is very easy but if you add 2000 feet of elevation into those steps, the workout begins. Then put a 30-40 pound pack on the back and each step is work.

Along the way we saw deer everyday and twice we encountered bears. We had a lot of answered pray along the way. While camped at 10,000 feet and after a very look like rain all  day, we asked God to have the rain wait until we could set up our tent. It rained all night and we stayed dry! The forecast for snow also didn't happen which would have been very dangerous for us on the rocky trail the following day or be unable to find the trail. Either way, back or forward, was 20 miles out of the wilderness to get back to the car.

Pictures will be unable to describe the landscape and the breathtaking views. We will be unable to fully describe reaching our physical limits. For me it was the uphill pass and being very winded and tired. For Tim, the downhill caused strain on all joints and last mile taking him to end of limits.

We had time to reflect on our journey as each day was full of taking one step at a time and giving thanks to God for each step and that we could do it. While we we enjoyed our days together, the 23rd Psalm became alive as we walked green meadows and walked beside streams and rivers and experienced a path that guided us. 

Hopefully will organize more photos for you soon but wanted to let you know, "All is Well!"

2010 backpack trip

This special video produced by Jerrol never made it too the blog so adding today!

https://youtu.be/4S18v_N_UTw

Family Reunion 2015

The occasion! Graduation for Heidi and birthdays for Char, Bryant and Oliver



The journey for 10 Krause's lasted 230 miles to reunion site in Fresno.



Here is the clan!

here is 1 branch.

Us!

How did we celebrate? Food, cake, balloons, games and stories.  

Nolans Birth 2-11-15

Feb 11 2015 Here's the thing. You can have an idea how a story can go but until you actually live the moment, you really don't know. And you don't know what you will feel or remember.

Charis: feb 8th due date long gone. At the doctors appointment, 3cm dilated but no contractions. That evening cramps a and hope, "this is it." Wed  at 130 am  I am excited and full of apprehension because I realize labor is in progress. I let Dace sleep for 1 hour. I needed him to join my sleepiness and suffering. You really can't rest when you are in labor. The contractions from the beginning have been intensely sharp making it difficult to cope. The contractions were irregular and ranged from 7 min to 1 1/2 minutes. My orginal plan was for an epidural but I was ready to throw in the towel and head to the hospital for drugs. It's time to notify the family.

Char:So last night Charis sends me a text that she thinks she might be having contractions. I smile, because really its time for Nolan to be born. He is a few days late on arrival and messing up all our planning. We all go to sleep because these things take time. Dace sends a text at 5:56am that Charis has been in labor and awake since 130 a.m. OK...awake now and getting ready for the next text that would tell me to get going to the hospital. My daughter has invited me to be with her during the birth of her second son. Soon, another text from Dace, her contractions are not regular but are intense. "Hi char if you want to come over that would be good. We might be heading to the hospital soon." I arrive at the apartment to see my daughter telling me, "I can't do this". She was thinking about medications to help with the pain. I ws thinking what if she has the baby right now? Off they go to the hospital while I wait for Dace's folks to arrive to care for Aidan. In my mind seeing the look on Charis's face, hoping she makes it to the hospital. Its a 30 minute drive.

Charis: mom arrives and says you need to go. Now I'm worried that this baby might come in the car. The morning traffic didn't help my stress level. Im trying to practice my breathing unsuccessfully. We get to the hospital and a wheelchair ride takes me past the nurses station. I apologize because I know it's change of shift. The nurses are eager to see how far along I am after reporting contractions have been 1 1/2 minutes apart. When the nurses tell me I am over 9 cm I almost didn't believe them. The feeling of relief comes knowing that we get to meet our son soon and that the hard part is almost over. Dace feels bad because now I can't receive the drugs. He is busy updating the family and facebook this time so everyone is in loop.

char: Dace soon texts that they are in the labor room and Charis is dilated to 9 cm. Wow...soon I'm stuck in traffic with the sun in my eyes. Well, if I don't get there in time...that's just part of the story. Soon I arrive at my daughters bedside and begin to witness each contraction. Together Dace and I count, rub her back, feet and give encouraging words. We watch her focus and serious face.

Charis: I am at the end of transition labor. I have finally gotten my focus and can work thru the contractions. It takes 2 hours before I finally get to push, and when that doctor came into the room for the final 10 minutes of pushing, I felt relief knowing how close I was to holding my baby boy. In between contractions and pushing, the doctor noticed my valentines day nails and complimented me.


Char: Thankfully things like, water breaking, doctor saying almost time to push and nurse saying baby in position all help to cheerlead this daughter of mine. I ponder my role in this sacred place of a child of my daughter being born. I will be a witness to this event. Soon she is pushing and we are encouraging but she is doing all the work and finally the little guys head is crowning. Seriously, I know how all this works theoretically but my heart is amazed and I'm overwhelmed watching that little head make a grand entrance, blue, wet and shocked and finally a little wimper and then some great cries and skin turns pink and my stomach relaxes that all is well. Every mother's amazing accomplishment now belongs to my daughter and I'm so proud of her. Small tears because Charis choose me to be with her and witness this.

Charis:

1987 Out of Africa

Reading a devotional on the times of Christians during Idi Amin caused me to reflect on my mission trip to Uganda. Motivation to go? God stirring my heart, husbands encouragement and support from friends and family. 500,000 people were killed as Amin began a war against the Christians.

Vivid sights: beggars in markets, cripples crawling in the dust using flip-flops on the hands to move along, orphans, checkpoints with soldiers, 4 month old twins the size of newborns. Dust. Children in rags, stores with just a few items. The picture above? yeah, skulls with bullet holes including skulls of children. Many memorials observed like this around the villages. Can you imagine?

 Food: cooked bananas, maize and pineapple, sugar cane.

smells: latrines, smoke in the air and the taste of smoke in the water.

different: no running water, some nights no electricity. Nurses make $10 a month.

Our work was immunizing children. Frustrations: using same syringe and just changing needle, running out of gas so no work, conflict with Africans way of doing things.  Hard part was inflicting pain on the little ones with the needle. One day after completion we reloaded the syringes with water and sprayed the children.  We passed out stickers and balloons. Let the children smile.

One memory lingers all these decades later. 20 children in a circle listening to me tell them a Bible story (memory foggy here but probably David) with Thomas giving translation. Thomas completed the time with prayer and telling me all the children wanted Jesus in their heart.

Danger: taking a walk and 2 soldiers stopped to talk to us and pulled out a grenade. Despite the language barrier knew something was off with these guys and happy to move past them.

One work day required a 2 hour drive and then a trip in an ancient wooden boat to cross the swamp. Oh yes, someone had to paddle but everyone had to keep bailing the water out because the boats leaked. After a 4 mile hike arrived. After immunizing the children had a feast of ma-toke and fresh fish from Victoria Lake.

Outcome: definitely received more then we gave. Out team immunized 4,500 children. Obedience. God is in Africa. God loves children!

God suffers with his little children.

Father, we pray for our hearts to be open to what you are doing.