Fall Church Family Retreat and Other Things...

 We recently attended an annual Church Family Retreat with many of our brothers and sisters and it was, as always, an encouraging and refreshing time for us.  Here you can see most of the children who attended and what a great time they had together!  Jakub loved being with so many children and he enjoyed quit a bit of freedom to run around the complex and play with them- despite my nervousness to trust him at 2yo to be a safe and good boy all the time. :)  He managed quit well, and so did we.  We enjoyed some great, and long, conversations over mealtimes with our friends and Jakub enjoyed being off with his friends. :)  The four (including him) kids on the far right of the picture had a lot of fun together and he still talks about them.  He's even named some of his cars or trucks after them and talks to them while playing. :)

 Here's a picture of most of the group (a few had left earlier) and we had an amazing time together.  The couple who came to encourage us (Americans living and working in Croatia) and teach us did an amazing job and I felt renewed by God and by the message they came to share with us.  We heard Tom speak in a very passionate and faithful way about the importance of continuing to keep our eyes on Jesus and the life he lived, the way he lived it, and the messages he shared as a way to map out our own lives and know that we are faithfully following Him.

There's a small lake (or maybe large pond) behind the facility where we stayed and Jakub enjoyed going out on the row boat.  He immediately asked if Papa (Josh's Dad Wendell) could come with us and go fishing. :)  Papa, he's definitely ready to go fishing with you sometime when we are home in the U.S.

 Out on the water...

 Helping Daddy row...

 Watching airplanes go by...

Other things we've been doing lately - eating salty goat cheese together because it's one of the snacks I can stand while pregnant. :)  He likes to suck it up like a noodle. 

 Playing games together and learning at the same time- he loves to play sequence with our new rules- that he must say the number or letter he's playing his marker on, as well as the color of marker he's using (we have multicolored dice). I'm glad he finds this fun. :)

 He continues to love painting and is learning to mix colors as well. 

 He also loves to help me cook.  Here we were making some homemade lemon muffins with cream cheese icing.  Yum!

 He's very proud of his finished product. :)

And he loves having hot-chocolate with Daddy! :) 

September has been a good and blessed month for us here in Olomouc- for many reasons.  God is ever-present in our lives.  We feel his guidance and love and I'm so thankful for Him.  Through the ups and downs he is faithfully walking before us.