As many of you might know, it has been over a year and a half since we moved back to southern california. It been a wonderfully difficult time. The reminder in James 1:2 to "Count it all joy when you meet trials of various kinds" has never been more real to me than this year. These past months have been a experiment in examining the "various kinds"...and in God proving the promise that these trials will produce steadfastness. It's been too long since I have updated this page. In some ways, I think it is losing its "effectiveness". With our mailchimp updates and our facebook group page, it almost seems like we're falling in to the trap of over-communicating...and in this trap, updates are lost. But...I think over-communicating is "better" than isolation. Plus...God has done some amazing things during this time and through the challenges, has placed our entire family in positions of growth while stretching and strengthening our faith. For