Summer Update :D

Hey Ramblers! There haven't been many posts lately. I am so thankful for this rain! It is really a blessing! How is everyone enjoying their summer?? :) My family and I just got back from a trip to visit our family in Las Vegas and spend some time in beautiful Zion National Park. Our family in Vegas has 7 children ranging from 8 months to 20 years old. It was awesome to spend time with them. They also keep Torah…which is super. :) So, here are a few photos from my recent adventures. :)

This is little Bella. She's the newest addition to my Las Vegas family. She's adorable and totally content with wherever you have her. I got to be there for her first swim! She's a great baby. ^.^

This is a weeping rock in the Park. It is basically an arch that water drips out of. It was SOOO refreshing on the warm day. (photo cred. my sister)

This is a view of the canyon walls. (photo cred. my sister)

My family underneath the weeping rock! (photo cred. a stranger…xD)

Now, this is the ceiling in a hotel in Las Vegas. Chase visited this artist's museum in Seattle while she was there. It was magnificent!

Hope you are all doing well! 

Blessings, Paige

Family Week 2015

Shalom everyone! I apologize for not posting in so long, but here is a really long one to catch up! We were so blessed to be able to go to the 2015 Family Week with Ha Yovel, and what an amazing time we had!

We left with our friends the Morgan's early in the morning on April 1. Our goal was to get all the way to Indepedance, Missouri in one day and drive the rest of the way to Kenlake the next day. The first part of the day went like this...

We made it to Kansas City and stopped at a Whole Foods to get dinner and started back on the road to get to the hotel we were staying at in Independance. By the time we were on the road again it was dark and the roads were very busy. As we were going people kept leaning out of their windows and pointing frantically at our camper and shouting at us. We weren't really sure why, until we realized that we had blown a tire on the camper earlier that day somehow without realizing it and now it was sparking. The drivers in Kansas City are super busy people, apparently, so if you aren't driving above 80 your getting run over and there was horrible traffic. We were able to get off the highway and change the tire without any more problems at that point.

Yep, it was pretty bad.

The next morning we woke up and got on the road after picking up a new spare tire. We got to Columbia, Missouri and stopped at a Walmart. When we came back out, the car wouldn't start.

We had to have the car towed to an auto shop, but the Morgan's could only fit three extra people and the tow truck driver could fit five extra. That still left three people who had to wait for Mrs. Lori to drop some people off at the auto shop and come back for them. That turned out to be my Mom, me, and Sophia. And there just so happened to be a Freddy's a little ways away.

Milkshakes. (Yuuuummmm!)

Mrs. Lori came back for us and drove us to where our car had been taken.

Oh yeah, it was great fun.

We ended up having to stay in a hotel for an extra three days while they were fixing our car. The mechanic was bending over backwards trying to get us back on the road and stayed up till almost midnight for three days trying to get the car fixed. We were so, so blessed to have such a kind man helping us.

Sunday we were back on the road driving the rest of the way to the campground. We made it by lunch time and had an amazing time enjoying the camping trip and learning what Yahweh has in store for us! We were so blessed to be able to go.

I'll try to post more pictures as soon as I get the pictures from my Mom's camera onto the computer, but these will have to do for now.

After Family Week we drove to the Creation Museum in Cincinnati and it was amazing! It is definitely worth it to drive out there. We kind of had to rush through it because we were needing to get to the campground we were staying at in Wisconsin, but it was so neat! I would definitely go again and take at least 2 or 3 days to go through it so that I could see a little bit more. We were very happy to go.

We stayed two nights in Wisconsin and visited with our friends Brittney and Caleb and their three children. Apparently, Wisconsin is famous for it's cheese, so we spent several hours hunting for fresh cheese curds and found some that had been made that day! They were so good... We still have some, actually.

After that we drove though Iowa and Nebraska and stayed at my Mom's brother's house in Kearney, NB. We got up at 3 am the next day and drove and drove, trying to get home as fast as we could. Colorado's weather was a wreck! There was snow everywhere and by the time we got to Georgetown there were five accidents that we saw because the roads were so slippery. 

Here is Denver.

This is in the mountains.

And here is coming into Silverthorne.

And we can't forget vail...

And here is the surprise we had waiting for us when we got home!

Over 20 dozen eggs that our chickens laid for us while we were gone!

So that was some of our trip. I will hopefully be posting more pictures soon, but now you have a general idea! Thank you, Yahweh, for allowing us to go!

Shalom,
Emma

Our trip so far...

This is what's happened to us so far on our trip. We're in Columbia, Missouri.

Family Week, here we come!

Leaving for Kentucky tomorrow morning bright and early with the Morgans. Pray for safe travels and great weather all the way there and the whole time we're there! So excited!

Update on Hans

Hey. I just thought that I would share that Hans is doing much better. He is still in the hospital, but they are just monitoring him because he took in lots of water. The prayer now is that that won't cause any problems. Other than that, he is much better.
     We are STILL praying for Maurine's FULL recovery and will do so until the last minute.YHVH is not bound by death. :) I feel so sad about their family. I will definitely be praying for them.

Maureen just passed away. They took her off life support. Please pray that Abba would comfort Mike and the children through this difficult and tragic time. I'll keep you updated when I find out more about the baby. I think he's still okay, but I'm not sure.

Keep praying.

Smallwood update

We just found out from our friend Mrs. Cindy that Maureen is on life support right now. Keep praying.

Emergency Prayer Request

I know that many of you know the Smallwood family who used to live in Rulison but moved to Tennessee last fall. I don't have many details right now, but Maureen Smallwood was pregnant and had a baby boy either yesterday or earlier today. Something was wrong and her organs shut down and she died. They got her to a hospital in Nashville and recesitated her. They weren't sure if she was going to be okay, but we got a call from the Millers and she passed away earlier this evening. As far as I know the baby is still doing okay. 

For those of you who don't know the Smallwoods, they have four children: Joe, J.T, Sarah, and then the baby boy. Mike (the husband) and the children need a lot of prayer. This is a very tragic thing to have happen. 

Also, Hans Dittrich is in the hospital in Loveland because he partially drowned at  the swimming pool. I guess he's breathing now, but he's not respondimg to anything.

We need to pray against the enemy who is out to steal, kill, and destroy. With Maureen, we are praying that she would be resurrected and that if it's not the will of the Father to bring her back to life that He would send comfort to Mike and the children... Sarah is only 4 or 5... And to their family during this difficult time. I'll post more if I get more details. 

Walking in the Spirit

I know many of us went to hear Kenny Russel speak in Montrose yesterday on Shabbat. Was I the only one who was absolutely amazed and astounded at his words and who obviously needs to do something drastic? I was absolutely shocked at what I saw in myself as he was talking and praying! What I saw, quite honestly, was a little nerve racking.

I'll be perfectly honest with all of you... I can't say that I've ever heard from the Spirit and I do not know what my purpose is.

I think that is what scared me the most.

I've been sleeping. I know the importance of hearing from Yahweh, but I never heard from Him, so I kind of blew it off, telling myself that it wasn't really a big deal, that it didn't really matter.

Mistake number one.

I'll be honest with you again... This lead to me not really wanting to pray. No words ever came. It then lead to me having no desire to sit and read His Word. So I just didn't. I didn't think about praying, and I didn't read anything from the Bible.

Mistake number two.

Some of you know that I had a life changing experience one Friday night with my parents when unclean spirits left  me. For the first time in a long time I didn't feel irritated, offended, stressed, or angry for an entire day. It lasted several weeks, and I again was praying often and digging into the Word. I didn't feel discouraged until one day, I totally blew it.

After that, everything I had been doing the past several weeks was crushed. I found no joy in reading the Scripture like I usually did, and I again couldn't pray. I was irritated and angry at the smallest of things, and offended by other people's words and/or actions.

Mistake number three.

I've been like this for several weeks, now. I was still in it yesterday. All day after those teachings I couldn't stop thinking about what he said. I fell asleep thinking about it and my first thoughts waking up this morning were about it. It's almost 9:30 here, and that's all I can think about, still! What he said  really impacted me and convicted me and I know that I CANNOT ever go back to what I was! I CANNOT be the same as I was before! I walked out of that building with no doubts. I still have no doubts now, as I write this.

All this to say is I need prayer! I have no idea on what my next step should be, other than diving deeper into His Word and praying without ceasing. Please, please please pray for me to hear from the Father and to do what He says! I do not want to be out of His will or obedience, and I know for certain that I can't live my life the way I was.

Which leaves me in the waiting zone. Of course I want only His perfect will to be done, but please pray also that He will tell me what to do quickly! I need direction. For those of you who know me,  you know that I don't do well when I have feel like I have no vision or purpose. :) Maybe this teaching me a lesson in patience. Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this and I want all of you to know that your prayers are greatly appreciated! This teaching was very timely, for me, at least, and I really, truly believe that God had a message in that for me.


Emma

P.S. I absolutely love his accent! Wasn't he so fun to listen to?

Baruch Korman Cancelled

Hey ramblers! This is a quick post to get the word out that, sadly, Baruch Korman will not be in GJ tomorrow. His flights were cancelled and he is stuck in Dallas! So if you were planning on going, I hope this caught you in time! Blessings and Shabbat shalom!!

Emma: Fingerless Mitts!

They are finished! I'm looking forward to (Yahweh willing) selling these at Family Week in April! I'm also in the process of making up my own pattern to sell, and hopefully those will be finished soon, also, so that I can post pictures of those for you to see! This a fairly simple and quick knit for the knitters out there who are looking just a fun project. I could make these over and over again and never get bored! 

~Emma~

Sophie

Hey, guys, Shining Starts is doing a rather large giveaway for baby blankets and multiple coupons of 15 dollars off... Awesome!  Y'all should check it out!  :) 

Emma: Freckled Lemonade (the healthy version)

How many of you have had Red Robin's Strawberry Freckled Lemonade? Amazing! Before I cared about eating healthy whole foods, I told everyone whenever I drank a glass of it that I could live on it for the rest of my life and that I didn't' care if it it was hurting my body. 

About a year ago I stopped drinking it because I felt guilty when my parents didn't get it and I still did. I'll admit it... I was kind of sad that it was so toxic because it tasted so darn good! And then we went on the Gaps diet. It really wasn't a loud, then! 

During our first week on Gaps I was desperately hungry for something to satisfy the sudden need for sugar that I didn't realize was there. Apparently I really needed a sugar detox because I don't think I've ever wanted so many sweets in one week before! (I think I made an average of 6-7 desserts that week)  My search took me to Pinterest and many of the health food blogs that my Mom follows. While I was looking I found a recipe for strawberry lemonade. It looked good, and it was Gaps legal, since the only ingredients were strawberries, lemon, honey, and water. Why not? I started following the directions. They were a little complicated, so I changed it up a bit. I was amazed at my result. It turned into the best good for you Freckled Lemonade EVER!!! It tastes exactly like Red Robin, only without the added junk and made with healthy foods and hardly any ingredients. Yum!

You can make this and a slushie/smoothie or actual lemonade, depending on how you like it. I hope that you enjoy!

Freckled Lemonade

For slushie

4 cups frozen strawberries

Two lemons, juiced

1/2 cup honey

2 cups water

Blend all ingredients together.

For lemonade

4 cups frozen strawberries

2 lemons, juiced

1/2 cup honey

6 cups water

Blend all ingredients together.

This recipe makes about 6-8 glasses. I haven't tried it, but I'll bet it would be really yummy no more realistic if you sliced partially thawed frozen strawberries and put them in each individual glass. Yum!

Try them out and let me know what you think!

Emma Frei

 This is a neat Maccabeats song that we found in their Out of the Box album. It's one of my favorites! Click here to listen to it. I'll post the translation below...

Yavo

Original Artist: Miami Boys Choir
Lyrics: the Siddur (“Tzur Mishelo”, part of the Friday night liturgy)

יִבָּנֶה הַמִּקְדָּשׁ
עִיר צִיּוֹן תְּמַלֵּא
וְשָׁם נָשִׁיר שִׁיר חָדָשׁ וּבִרְנָנָה נַעֲלֶה
הָרַחֲמָן הַנִּקְדָּשׁ     יִתְבָּרַךְ וְיִתְעַלֶּה
‘עַל כּוֹס יַֽיִן מָלֵא     כְּבִרְכַּת ה
בֶּן דָּוִד עַבְדֶּֽךָ  יָבוֹא וְיִגְאָלֵֽנוּ
‘רֽוּחַ אַפֵּֽינוּ
מְשִֽׁיחַ ה
Verse:
May the Temple be rebuilt, Zion’s city full again,
There we will sing a new song as we go up in joy,
To the Compassionate, the Holy One- may he be blessed and reaised on high-
With a full cup of wine, sign of the blessing of the Lord (Hashem).
Chorus:
The son of David Your servant: may he come and redeem us,
Breath of our life, anointed of the Lord.
(Rabbi Sacks Siddur)

Emma: Gaps Cookies

Yum! These are almost just like oat meal cookies, only grain-free and GAPS! I've made four batches so far in two days... They go fast in a family of nine, especially since they taste so good! These ones technically aren't all the way Gaps because of the chocolate chips, but if you get super dark chocolate chips that are like, 85 percent cocao, you should be good!

Cookies

1 1/4 cup almond flour

1 tsp coconut flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 cup honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp softened butter

2 tbsp coconut oil

1 3/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup chocolate chips (or as many as you like)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In a larger bowl, mix the honey, vanilla, butter, coconut oil, and cinnamon with a hand mixer until smooth. Mix in the dry ingredients until well incorporated, then add the shredded coconut and the chocolate chips. Place smallish balls on a parchment lined cookie sheet and press down slightly to flatten. The grow a little bit, so make sure they're about two inches apart. Bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on your oven. Cookies should be golden brown on edges and bottom. Let cool completely on cookie sheet, so that you don't scorch your tongue, because the chocolate chips are very, very hot when they are finished! These would be really good with a glass of cold milk, I bet! Someone should try it out and let me know! A single batch makes about 18 cookies.

Emma Frei: For the Love of Writing

I love letters. I have written letters since I knew how to read and write. My very first pen-pal was my cousin Megan, who is the same age as me. The people who delivered the mail were my Dad and my Aunt Lori. I wrote letters to her up until I was nine or ten years old. We both loved it, me especially. For as long as I can remember I have loved to read. I remember sitting in my room when we lived in Rifle at ten pm. reading one of my favorite series, Little House on the Prairie.  Often Mama would come in and find me asleep with my nose in an open book. I loved to read so much that I decided that I was going to be a writer when I grew up. And I was serious about it. I have so many notebooks filled with stories, actual books, that I wrote when I was seven years old. Not kidding! In fact, I have read so many novels that I already knew everything about writing by the time I got to that in language arts! I knew from reading where to put comas, quotation marks, proper grammar, the basics if writing. The very first chapter book I wrote was a holacaust story, where most of the characters died and the whole thing was very tragic. A few years ago I re-wrote it, this time into a story about a Jewish girl who marrys someone and escapes with him out of the Warsaw Ghetto and into Britain. I am now changing it a little bit again, adding more drama as I see fit. So far it is my master piece. It will probably continue to change and grow over the years, as most of my stories have. In 2013 I started blogging. 

As I've grown and matured I have turned again to letters. I'm now writing to my cousins Megan AND Lily, who live in Yuma, AZ, a pen-pal named Alexandra and a friend who I met at Family Week in Kentucky back in 2013. And I'll tell you what: There is something very special about getting a letter in the mail with your name on it. It's different than getting an email or a text. It's something you can hold in your hand, something you can feel. Somebody put time and effort into that letter, even if it's just a simple note asking how you're doing. Somebody sat down and thought about you. That makes me feel special. 

So write a letter. Take time to think about who you should write to, whether it's a friend and a relative, or both. Write it with a pen on paper, not on your computer or phone. It'll mean that much more to whoever you write to.

Emma Frei

Hey every one! How are you all doing? 

I just wanted to take a moment and throw this prayer request out there, if you don't mind. :)

Back in 2014, my Aunt's retina began to detach. This was really scary for all of us, and she immediately went and had surgery to fix it before it came off entirely. Her eye was just barely saved.

Now, only a few months later, she has developed cataracts in her eye, as well. Again, a few days ago, she went and had another surgery. :( No fun! 

Please pray that she will heal well from the surgery and that nothing will go wrong with her eyes or any other part of her body! Her name is Roseanna.

Yahweh willing, she wants to try to cme out here to visit us as soon as it's safe for  her to drive over Vail Pass. We are very excited and hopeful!

Thank you all for your prayers!

Hannah - Mana

      Hey guys! I have just had a VERY, VERY quiet shabbat and pretty much did NOTHING all day. We did, however, read the Torah portion. I thought that I would share what I got from it.

      Mana has always reminded me of God's word because that is where we so often look to get spiritually "fed". So when YHVH tells the people to go and gather the food they need for the day, it reminds me to remember to get my "food" for the day. I can name at least one person who is very good at remembering this. My lovely, hard working sister, Sophia. She gets up as early as she can and reads as much of her bible as she can. Sometimes she reads more than ten chapters!

      Here is my problem. I am not a morning person. No matter how hard I try, I do not wake up. If I had the opportunity, I would probably sleep until lunch time and feel perfectly fine. (Brutal honesty here) :P So sometimes when I get up in the morning I barely have time to recite a memory verse in my head let alone read 1 whole chapter of anywhere in the bible. So I usually just skip the whole thing. But reading this Torah portion told me something very encouraging.

     In Exodus, when the people go to gather their mana, it says (something like) he who gathered more for the day did not waste, but he who gathered less did not want. Hmmm. Let me put it this way. Sophia, who gathered 10 chapters of word for the day did not waste. Hannah who gathered 2 verses for the day did not want.

    The point: Don't feel discouraged for not reading enough of your bible. Sure, always aim for more,  but when you gather little, trust God to make it last. :)

Exciting Things are Happening ;)

Would you all join me in wishing Hannah CONGRATULATIONS on passing her permit test yesterday!! You go girl!! Alsooooo, today is Aidan Jones's birthday! So, if you think about it, help make his day special by wishing him a happy b-day. This is his big one-four! (   14 (;    ) Shabbat Shalom, everyone! Have a restful, blessed day. :)

Blessings, Paige

Emma Frei: String Section

 Ha Ha! Laughed so hard I cried, because it's totally true!!!

Sophie

Hey y'all!  What's up?  Do you guys have plans for today?  I'm going to babysit seven children 5- for seven hours...  Its a busy day!  Already tired...  Pray for energy, ramblers!!!!  :)

Emma Frei: Gaps Intro Stage 4

This. Is. The. Never. Ending. Story. Only a week on intro and I feel like I could go out and eat doughnuts, cookies, burritos, cinnamon rolls and bread from great harvest, you name it. Please pray for us to have patience! Every one is beyond ready to eat ice cream with homemade chocolate hard shell drizzled all over the top of it. To make matters worse, I got a cold from somewhere, so now my voice is very hoarse and sore and it is really not fun! Please pray for quick healing, as this is not something my Mom should be doing while nursing an infant. :(

Hannah - Book Suggestions!

Sure! I have some great books.

     Chronicles of the Kings by Lynn Austin - About King Hezekiah's reign. Very exciting!

     Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe - Simply one of the best books ever. Read snuggled up in a blanket with hot tea and a box of tissues near by...

     Eleventh Guest and Seventh Day by Bodie and Brock Thoene - These are part of a 12 book series but out of them all, these 2 were my favorite. Don't worry to much about reading them in order. It doesn't really mess anything up. :)

     Keeper of the Bees by Jean Strattonporter - A sweet story and a gentle read.

     Hinds Feet on High Places - An inspiring story about a lame woman named Much-Afraid who, aided by the Good-Shepherd, makes a perilous journey to the High Places. I really recommend this book. If anyone would like to read this one, they can borrow my copy. :)

I have felt like reading a good book too. I have read all of these and more and I have no idea what to look into next! Maybe you guys have some ideas for me?  I enjoy novels, biographies, whatever I can find!
    
    

Hey friends!! I've been inspired recently to read and I was wondering if any of you have a great series you've read? Thanks!!

Emma Frei: Day three of Intro

Well, good news! Today was a lot better than yesterday! I felt like I could walk, which is nice. :) Yesterday was a bad day for every one. May we speed through this quickly and be granted healinf!

What I ate:

Breakfast- Maitake Mushroom Soup

Lunch- Steak with Mushroom and Leek Gravy

Dinner- Mexican Soup

Dessert: Lemon Coconut Creams and Milk Kefir with honey

Snack- Chicken Stock

This actually isn't going to be as bad as I thought it was going to be. The food tastes pretty good, it's just so easy to digest that it goes through your system really fast! Eating when ever you need to is nice. :) Thank God we're homeschoolers! If we weren't we probably would be able to do this!

Our Second Day on Intro

Ugh! The only way I can keep doing this is by telling myself that I am going to eat ice cream as soon as we're off Gaps, hopefully soon!!! Today every one was really detoxing I think, and it wasn't very fun! :( But the thought of pizza keeps me going. :) For breakfast we had carrot ginger soup. For lunch we had left over chicken soup. For dinner we had chicken thighs with mushrooms, leeks, and broccoli. For dessert we had those Lemob Coconut Creams and a minuscule amount of milk kefir with a minuscule amount of honey. It tasted pretty good, but like I said... Minuscule. Obviously I'm not thinking very clearly, so I should probably go. Please pray that we will get through this part of the diet quickly! It is very stressful with picky little ones who want to eat apples  and cuties all day.

Emma Frei: Our first day on Intro

Ugh! I've eaten so much soup today! Most of you know that the Frei family is currently on the GAPS Diet, a really intense diet that is supposed to heal you gut and auto-immune disorders. We've been on Full Gaps for 93 days (Yes, I have been counting) and now we're finally getting to the really hard part, the Introduction Diet. Basically we can eat soup for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. For lunch we had butternut squash soup with a cup of chicken broth. I've eaten, like, four full size meals since breakfast, and it's only 2:30 pm!!! Thank God for a full freezer! Hopefully we'll only have to stay on this stage for a few days. We made these little coconut and honey bar things for the kids if they eat all of their food. :) I added some lemon to mine and they tasted really good! Here's the recipe.

1/2 cup of coconut oil
1/2 cup of honey
1/4 of a lemon (optional)

Blend it all together until smooth. We put ours in fun molds like lego people and ginger bread men. They're pretty small, so you're not getting a whole bunch of sugar when you eat one. The lemon is a great touch!

Anyways, today has been an interesting day. :) How are all of you?

Emma

 I'm an avid knitter, violinist, reader, blogger, writer, sunset watcher. I have a passion for walking in purity, dressing modestly, and staying healthy. Read more about me here.

Blessings!

Emma Frei

Shabbat Shalom! Anyone doing anything exciting for Shabbat tomorrow?

Ramblings Bible Study people: Have you read Romans 7 and 8 yet? I encourage you to read it if you haven't already, and if you have, read it again! It was really encouraging for me when I was having a really difficult day with some of the things we talked about last week about not feeling like your good enough, trusting God, valuing His Word, and really guarding my heart and mind. (Wearing the Armour of God) Let me know what you all think!

Blessings,
Emma Grace

Yea! Awesome blog backround update!

Like it? I love it! What do you all think?? If you go to the left hand corner, there are a few other options if the template isn't your favorite. Please comment and let me know what you think!!! Shalom! P.S. Happy Birthday, Mama! Love you! ~Emma~