New Life in NH

Veggie Garden Apprentices

2009-06-11T09:32:00.008-04:00

Living in NH. It is so beautiful in the spring and summer. I enjoy watching the magnificent changes to the landscape as winter fades and emerald green slowly replaces white. We take magical journeys around the yard to see what's up. We found a grouse nest in the brush with five little eggs. Checking in the next day, we discoverd one bald little hatchling.

We have had the hummingbird feeders up since April-- a bit too early, but we weren't sure when they would appear and wanted to be ready. Our first little visitor arrived on May 4th.

Getting to know the birds is fun and discovered we have pilleated woodpeckers! They are kind of rare and really big!

We have our first vegetable gardens planted. We built 3 raised beds and decided to add a fourth so we can grow vine plants like pie pumpkins, zucchini and watermelon.

The asparagus that we transplanted for Dottie last year came up!

Throughout May

John took a little trip to the patch each morning to count the emerging spears. We were quite surprised and happy about that success.

I harvested some lettuce, arugula, and spinach already.

Dottie has decided not to garden with us. She used to love gardening, but she has difficulty moving around on the bumpy ground. So, she gives us regular garden advice and weighs in on decisions about what to grow and where to put things. She will be 81 in September.

Have Tractor, Will Farm

2009-03-16T08:34:00.004-04:00

I'm sitting at my desk and look up to see a little black thing hanging from my bangs. It takes me a moment to realize it is a spider. Flash back to summer 2007. The sight of a spider would bring chills and a small panic. It takes about 3 months for me to get used to their constant presence. Now, I simply grab it and knock it onto the floor. I think to myself, "The spiders have arrived, it must be spring."

John and I venture out to inspect the blueberry bushes, we hike around on fondant-like snow in our snowshoes. It is glistening wet snow, packed down and slowly sinking as the temperature rises. It is a gorgeous day! In the 40's so we don't really need a jacket. We contemplate how we're going to attack the huge pruning job ahead, when we're going to finally burn that large pile of brush (before the snow melts for sure!). As we stand on the new raised beds we built last fall that are now covered with a white blanket, we are excited and a bit intimidated by the expected garden.

We have a tractor now. He moved mountains (of snow) with that thing all winter. We sculpted the landscape with it last summer. Most NH guys who would venture on the property, even the Lowe's delivery driver, would ask us, "do you have a tractor yet?" We finally bit the bullet. And are we glad we did!

I can see John as a full-time farmer. He will start the seeds for tomatoes, etc. inside soon. I'm more afraid of how we're going to preserve all that food once we grow it. But I'm on my usual uphill learning curve. "One day at a time" I tell myself when I feel the anxiety rise up in my stomach. "God is in control."

Picasa Web Albums - Daphne

2008-09-02T22:10:00.000-04:00

Picasa Web Albums - Daphne

Back Home from the Dominican Republic

2008-08-16T11:19:00.010-04:00

A big "Thank you" to all who are thinking about us and praying for us.

We had an interesting experience in the DR. Lots of ministry and eye-opening experiences. The living conditions were quite rough, however. It was extremely hot, for starters, no A/C, no window screens, dismal bathroom conditions, and bad water. It really makes one think about the luxuries we have here in the U.S. But the people there are quite used to all of that and those things don't factor in as much for the Dominicans. The things they suffer from are lack of jobs, food, clean water, drug addiction, and many orphaned children running the streets. There is trash all over the streets. But the insides of people's homes, no matter how humble, were pristine. No dirt and no clutter (and very little furniture). They are also well educated. Many have college degrees and there are many nurses and doctors who make almost no money. The education opportunities are very good there, but what good is it if there aren't any jobs? Sad.

John and I both got sick. I got "El gripe", or essentially the DR version of the flu. I ended up at the clinic and was prescribed antibiotics, and a fistful of other meds. I was feeling better in a day. John got a cold, but so did everyone else in the house.

We spent a couple of days visiting the very poor villages where most people there live in shacks. We went around the noon hour to see how things are going. The first clue as to whether a family is hungry is if you visit them during that time of day, they will be cooking if they have food. The large meal of the day is around 1:00. We found one family of single mothers, Haitians, who did not have any food. We gave them some money for food and invited them to church. The next day one of the moms showed up at one of the churches where we were having a small ministry to the youth, this is where she gave her life to Jesus. We then began to see her at the other church too. It appeared that she might have started to make friends as the other women were reaching out to her. The church will step in to help her in the future. The churches are poor too, but they share and give out of their own poverty.

Another day at one the villages, Palmarejo, (John and I couldn't go because we were sick) the team immediately encountered a poor young mother in hysterics as she had just found out her two year old daughter had died at the hospital. They prayed for her and tried to console her, but she was literally out of control with grief. This is a Haitian village, and the poorest of all. The Haitian refugees struggle the most, but there is a strong movement to win their hearts for Christ. Once out of satanic Haiti, the people's hearts are more open to the Holy Spirit. Although there are still witch doctors openly practicing satanism and there is still a strong-hold to some degree, the Dominican land has been marked for Christ and we saw many, many mission groups on the plane going there to minister.

The church we attended was quite amazing. The youth are stepping into leadership roles with boldness. They get up and share and sing with no trepidation what so ever. It was really quite inspiring. On Saturday morning, at the church called Elohim, we gathered to teach and minister to the newly raised church youth leaders. The Holy Spirit ministered to them through prophecy and prayer. They were filled and encouraged. They will need it, their mission field is huge and right in their own backyards. The Dominican Republic has a large number of youth. I’m not sure if I have this statistic correct, but I believe that 40% of the population there is under 15 years old. The Dominicans like life in high decibels. Everything is loud, including the worship music, which bounces energetically off the concrete walls. It was a little hard on my pampered American ears, but you can see that that's how they like it. Besides, they have to drown out the loud motorcycles constantly whizzing by.

It was a pleasure to serve there, but I must confess, the I was blessed by them more than I blessed others. There is more I'd like to share, but I will give an opportunity to let this sink in before I continue with this blog.

:-Daphne

Call to Missions

2008-06-27T09:49:00.003-04:00

It has become clear that Jesus is calling His church into obedience. I hear over and over the testimonies and prophecies where people are being called to do things completely contrary to what the world is saying. He is holding us accountable and blessing His obedient children.

John and I have an opportunity to do short term missions through our new church here. He is challenging us-- which is what we prayed for and took the chance to move here for. We had become complacent with our comfortable lives in Denver. We truly believe He called us to New Hampshire to serve several purposes. First, to care for the family property and John's mom, but also to tear ourselves from the materialistic comfort and have opportunities to serve and grow in a new environment. God is gradually revealing His plan for us as we learn to wait on Him.

As a result, we are really experiencing some incredible things! I, personally, am going through some humbling experiences, yet I'm getting much closer to Jesus than I ever knew could be possible. And I know that is the tip of the iceberg. I'm beginning to learn a new and powerful meaning of a real and personal walk with Jesus. That brings me to our opportunity to the mission field. The church we attend-- very small, only 60 or so attendees-- does so much mission work it is amazing. They head up a ministry called Open Arms Outreach (www.oaoutreach.org) One of the initiatives is to build a children's home (aka orphanage) in the poor and destitute country of the Dominican Republic. They have over 200,000 orphans-- children who have been turned out to the street because of lack of food and resources, by single mothers, many of whom are addicted to drugs (plus other reasons). There is a wonderful Christian community there in the DR, who are poor, but extremely willing to work with us to provide for these homeless children. Further, the DR government is partnering with the church to build the facility! They have donated acreage and resources in a newly developing area, which just so happens to be next to a squatters village of the poorest of the poor. The intent is to house, clothe and feed up to 65 homeless children, and minister to the mothers and children in the squatters village by providing food, education, and any other day support as possible. the main purpose of this is to prevent even more children from becoming orphaned, but also to spread the love of Jesus!

But wait there's more! The DR is a tiny island, but the other half is the country of Haiti. Haiti is like night and day to the DR, as they are committed to Satan. Many Haitian refugees end up in DR and the very people who flee Haiti's oppression are becoming open to the light of Jesus Christ in their new home in the DR.

God is moving so mightily in this community I cannot exclaim how excited we are to be a part of it! John and I plan on going to the next trip which commences August 1. We humbly ask for your prayers as we travel and begin preparations for our trip.

Bear Alert

2007-09-14T08:29:00.001-04:00

We were out on the front lawn, admiring our newly planted grass and I saw something black coming by the house. Because of the dropoff, I couldn't see it it entirely, but I thought it was a cat. Then a second later I thought it was a very large cat--maybe a Puma? (there are no puma's in New Hampshire, silly) Oh! It's a bear! We new we had a bear. We could see evidence of it all over the place. We watched as it lumbered down the hill toward a break in the trees toward the road and disappeared. Later, John spotted it by the pond eating pears. He called in for me to grab the camera. He stole a few shots before the bear realized John's presence, then bolted. I had never before seen a bear in real life-- well, except at the zoo.

Approaching Autumn

2007-09-14T07:55:00.000-04:00

It's already mid-September and I just picked (almost) the last of the blueberries. It actually felt like fall on Labor Day. Things are darkening up a bit and it stays fairly cool. Some of the leaves are starting to change. I saw four very fat turkeys come down from the top of the hill. I'm already thinking about Thanksgiving. There are apples on the ground, everywhere. The bugs are starting to disappear and I think the bats have gone. We started attending church a few weeks ago. It is small, maybe 65 people. We were greeted with warmth at the door and the sermon was meaty and interesting. It is so good to be back in fellowship again. We have been very productive this summer. Here is a list of the things we accomplished with the help of family. We:

cleaned out the "garage" in preparation for it's restoration
put crushed stone around the perimeter of the house to slope water AWAY
built two wood planters to add interest to the porch
had estimates on the garage restoration and determined we need a new garage altogether
cleared out much growth around the pond's perimeter
picked blueberries and made some jam, pancakes, pies, and muffins
picked apples and froze some and made applesauce
had the brush in the fields mowed with a tractor
cut down overgrowth
sent many mowers, brushcutters, chainsaws to get repaired (some could not be repaired)
bought a riding mower
covered the front yard with loam (by Hand) and hydro-seeded
painted the exterior doors
cleaned out the basement (ongoing)

I know there's more, but you get the picture.. We are currently getting bids on the new garage. Next week the excavation will begin and the foundation will be laid. Our hope is to have a garage built before the first snowfall. I'm not sure when the snow starts flying around here...

Welcome Visitors

2007-08-05T20:11:00.000-04:00

We've had the pleasure of visitors from Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, and Maine since we arrived in June. Kelly was the first to greet us-- all the way from Florida-- and helped us unpack and also bought a much needed work truck for the property. Thank you, Kel! The first weekend Joel and Lori made a trip up from Massachusetts to greet us. Joel has worked very hard trying to keep up with the never ending maintenance of this property and taking care of Mom. Although he does it out of love and care for his Mom, his siblings cannot thank him enough for his tireless work and care over the years. Angela, Bobby, and Angelina, along with Allison and Mark were here for a week in July. We miss you already! Becky arrived July 17th and worked very hard to get things in ship-shape around here (everybody needs a Becky). We met up with Phillip and April who moved to Maine just over a year ago. It's so nice to have folks from the marriage group only a couple hours away. This week Doug and Susan came from Colorado to meet with their family, but joined us for a weekend jaunt to the coast! Susan painted the first portrait of our new home! More are coming this fall. Winona will come from Colorado to see her new home and hopefully Becky and John Jr. will come too. We're so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family, both near and far.

Angelina (13 months) John and Becky John, Mom (grandma), Mark, Lori, Joel, Alli, Angelina, Bobby Grandma & Alli John, Joel, Grandma, Lori, Bobby, Alli, Mark (where's Angie?)

Angie and Angelina

Blueberries!

2007-07-29T09:56:00.000-04:00

Every evening we go out and pick berries. Today we’re picking blueberries. The wild ones are tiny but sweet and cultivated berries are huge and sweet-tart (great for muffins). We plan to make blueberry jam.

Wish you were here!

This is home?

2007-07-18T09:27:00.000-04:00

It was a chilly Saturday afternoon when we arrived in New Hampton, New Hampshire (June 23rd, 2007). Excited and exhausted, all at once, I strained to take it all in. The trees were so thick we could barely see the front of the house as we drove up the street. We turned into the driveway and were overcome by the waist-high wildflowers and grass that had literally covered most of the acreage on the property. Immediately we thought, “Boy, have we got a lot of work to do!” Well, first things first. We see our Mom. John’s mom is wonderful and greets us with a warm embrace. We are here for her, first and foremost. Now, in her upper 70’s, this place has obviously become too much for her to handle. Rather than uproot her and bring her to Colorado to live out her years in suburbia, we grant her continued independence by allowing her to live in the home we (the extended family) built for her, and simultaneously creating a new and welcoming space for family to come visit whenever they want. After just a short time, we’ve figured that many things here are both a blessing and a curse. The wildflowers are really weeds— before long their showy disguises will be gone and they will appear as they really are. The house is new, but it is not finished. It is missing the charm and history the old house had. We have much to do to make it “home”. The garage—an old carriage house maybe?— is plenty large enough to fit our three vehicles, but there is only one door! It will need a major renovation to get it repaired and remodeled so it will be useful by winter. I do not want to scrape the ice from my windshield every day! We have our work cut out for us. Thanks for reading, we welcome your comments and your prayers. Please check back for regular updates and photos.