Apples to Pumpkins

Our week started out at a nearby apple farm. When we got there the gentlemen directing each car where to park asked who we were with. We explained we were homeschoolers and were here to pick apples. He proceeded to tell us that there were no apples on the trees due to the late frost this year. The crop suffered and there wasn't any apple picking......

We sat in the car and contemplated whether to leave or walk around. I guess the man noticed we were really disappointed and walked up to us and told us that if we asked for one of those long pickers in the store that they would give us one, and we could try and get the ones that were still at the very tops of the trees. We asked the lady at the store (an old barn converted into a store). She said "we don't have any more apples on the trees"(they had some in the coolers). My girlfriend was not taking no for an answer and said "the man in the packing lot told us to ask you for a picker and that there are apples at the top of the trees"(she was very gracious and kind in asking). The lady looked at us as if we were nuts, but she went ahead and gave us the picker and a bag. It was great! The kids climbed up in the trees and had a blast. There were plenty of apples. We filled two large bags and decided to stop....we could have filled at least two more.

They had a large pumpkin patch next to the apple trees. They were all sizes and alot of them were being eaten by worms...YUCK. But that made for some great science. The boys loved it. They caught some and put them in a bug carrier (we conveniently had in the car), and found different things they could feed them. They also had an area for the kids to play with round inner tubes that the kids could bounce on, large tubes they could crawl through, and a few animals for them to look at. The pigeons had a cage and on the bottom of that cage there were more.........you guessed it worms! The kids then were on a rescue mission to save the worms! They has a blast. We had lunch there and then headed back.

That night I got to share my testimony at the womens ranch. That was amazing. What an honor that God could use my mess to bring Him glory. Just awesome! I was able to share with these ladies that even though we give our lives to Christ and we are completely forgiven, we still will face the consequences of our past sins. Well today I got a taste of that and it is not as sweet as the taste of the apple pies I got to make with our apples. I guess I should have been expecting it. You can't just share you've got to live it for it to be real. I can tell them till I'm blue that they need to hang on to there faith no matter what they have to face because of their past choices, but do I apply it in my life......

Well I am doing OK, after some initial anger and frustration. I know that there is nothing that can take me from my Savior, and Nothing that can change my salvation!!!!

Thank you JESUS!