The Jolliff Family

We have had a busy couple days trying to get everything together for our trip. My mother came over the end of last week and it has been so helpful. I have been able to do errands and gather our needed supplies for the trip. I haven't taken many pictures but we have had a fun time and the boys have enjoyed their time as well. Friday we did the majority of our packing and tonight we are going to finish up. Yesterday, we enjoyed some time at a playground in the morning. In the afternoon, my mom and Sam went to see Toy Story 3 (his first big screen movie) while Hap, Andrew and myself went to a birthday party. Sam got these glasses pictured below at Wendy's yesterday and we might try and see if security stops him in the airport:) This evening we had our last team meeting and it was a wonderful time of praying and sharing about what God has been teaching us as we prepare for this trip. We know that it seems odd to some that we would take our children literally half way around t...

Last night we went down to Victory Field and enjoyed an Indian's game with about 90 other church members. This was a night to connect with some other Northsiders and have fun together. It was also Sam's first baseball game and he really enjoyed the game... well let's be honost be mainly enjoyed the $1 food they served and his friends. We sat in the grass which allowed the kiddos to run around. Wehad a blanket behind the Westrum's, good for us and bad for them as Sam enjoyed their cotton candy and Andrew enjoyed some tastes of an elephant ear thanks to Carly!! Sam and Maena having fun together. I think this picture is so cute of the little friends! It was a wonderful night, too bad the Indian's lost!

Hap received his Father's Day present a day early and he couldn't have been more excited. I arranged for us to be flown back to Illinois for the day. Since we have lived in this house for the last four years and we are only about 2 miles from the airport, Hap has been mentioning that it would be so neat to fly from Eagle Creek to Leckrone in Salem, since it is 1 mile from my parents house. So, we did that today with Josh as our pilot. It was really fun and special. Here is the plane we flew in. The co-pilot took his job very seriously. Sam... not so much:) After flying in, we drove straight to Patoka and spent the morning their. Here are the four cousins enjoying a delicious brunch. Sam enjoyed a tractor ride with Papa and moved some hay bales. In the afternoon, we headed to my parents house and grandpa and Sam went to look for choo-choo trains. They didn't have much success, but saw a few trains. Hap enjoyed the best chocolate pie ever, well much better than last t...

Two funny things I don'twant to forget that Sam said this week... 1. At the store he was sitting in the cart and as I walked down the aisle to gather something he yelled "Hey Babe" at me!! 2. Last night, Sam walked into our room and said "Hey Hap" to get his attention. It was totally unexpected and so cute coming from our two year old! I love that kid:)

The prayer guide below had been corrected and updated with our new departure date as being TUESDAY June 29th instead of Monday June 28th.

Please join us in praying for our upcoming trip to the Pac Rim: June 16- Pray for our physical preparation as we train for strenuous hiking as a team. June 17- Pray for adequate rest on our travel over. Travel time with be approximately 40 hours. June 18- Pray for the hearts of those we will have the opportunity to witness to. June 19- Pray that our witness would glorify Christ. June 20- Pray for J & A to have wisdom as they make final preparations for teams coming this summer. June 21- Pray that J & A would be encouraged as they spend time with other Kindgom workers this week. June 22- Pray for our teammates, Eric and Bernard, who will be spending over 1 month in country. June 23- Pray for the opportunity to testify this week as to why we would go around the world with our boys. June 24- Pray for Elizabeth as she gathers our needs for packing and supplies for in country. June 25- Pray for Hap as he finishes up work that needs done at Northside. June 26- Pray for Sam and Andre...

Andrew received new shoes today from my mom and dad. My dad called last evening and since he is off on Monday's wanted to come over and buy Andrew a pair of walking shoes. So, we headed to the store and he has some new white walking shoes! Andrew isn't walking but very close and he isn't too sure about his shoes yet. Sam also received some new shoes. Thanks Grandpa for the shoes, playing lots of farm and letting Sam "drive" your truck, but mainly thanks for coming over!!

This past Wednesday, we left for Ultimate Youth Camp or UYC in Ohio. We arrived just in time for worship and enjoyed praising with the youth and hearing the powerful speaker. Hap, I mean we, decided to camp out in preparation for Indonesia. It was great weather and Sam thought it was awesome. Only problem being that youth don't go to bed until late, much later than we go to bed haha!! Sam had a blast being with the youth, riding on the four wheeler big Micah brought and throwing water balloons. Andrew had a nice time hanging out in the backpack carrier and playing around in the grass. It was a fun experience and we are thankful we had the opportunity to attend for half the week. This is the only picture I took, can you believe it... I'm so ashamed of myself:)

This morning we went to the Children's Museum because I KNEW Sam would be able to see some trains there. We spent a long time in the train area, pressing buttons, watching the trains roll by and watching a video about laying railroad tracks. We also spent time in the playscape, an area especially designed for toddlers and under. Since Andrew is moving around so much, he was able to enjoy some freedom and exploration. Sam always enjoys exploring the different stations available and of course mowing:) Fun day had by all!!

Last night in an attempt to see some trains for Sam, we went downtown and covered some ground. Sam was in the backpack carrier and Andrew was in the stroller. We are in training for our mission trip, so Sam was on Hap's back for awhile and mine for awhile too. Downtown is so beautiful and it was a great night to be together as a family. We didn't see any trains, but we had fun anyway:)

The boys received a new chair today for the back porch from their daddy and I. The chair Sam received for his 1st birthday broke over the weekend and he was pretty bummed. So today we bought a new one that will be perfect for two boys! I realize this isn't a very exciting blog day... but it's all I've got!! haha:)

This afternoon after church, we met up with Hap's Aunt Sally and Uncle Neal. We met in Crawfordsville, about half way for the both of us. We wanted to catch up and they wanted to see the boys before we head overseas in a few weeks. It was a beautiful day with lots of white fluffy clouds to protect us from the sun. Sam had a fun time being chased around and Neal had an arm workout from pushing Andrew in the swing so much!! It was a fun day and now that we have found a good spot to meet I have a feeling we will be doing that more often!

This morning we attended Will and Katie's wedding. The bride was gorgeous and Hap did a great job officiating the ceremony. It was a fun time and everyone had fun visiting at the reception. After the wedding, Amanda and I headed to a historic distric downtown for a large rummage sale. I don't have any pictures, but it was amazing. Lots of neat antique treasures and some odd sightings including but not limited to a palm reader in lace!! I didn't pick up anything, but Amanda scored some great fruit glasses. Sam shaved tonight, one of his favorite activities and he looked so sweet doing it!! He loves his daddy and doing everything daddy does! He has a great daddy and I just adore watching him imitate him. Happy Saturday:)

Today, after a last minute decision, the boys and I met the Jablonski clan half way between us for a play date. Sam has been asking for "Micah and Lucas" just about daily, sometimes more. Today was a great day to play outside and catch up. Sam could hardly wait for them to arrive! Tonight we had a rehearsal dinner to go to and the boys dressed up in their tie shirts. You can't see the shirts too well, but a good friend of my mom's made them. They looked so darling and had so many compliments tonight. Thanks Connie!!

This past weekend Sam, Andrew, my mom, my dad and myself headed out to Virginia to visit Heather and Nathan. We drove part of the way on Thursday and then arrived Friday afternoon. It was so great to see them and both Sam and Andrew warmed right up to Aunt Heather and Uncle Nathan. Since Sam can't stop talking about choo-choo trains, he asked Uncle Nathan if we could see one. They could only think of one to visit, so we visited that on Friday night. After the train visit, we went to Wolf Trap national park. They have a historic amphitheatre. We had a picnic and watched The Prairie Home Companion. It was amazing. PHC is a radio program, so it was fun to watch the different actors and the man making the sounds. It only sprinkled on us and we had an enjoyable evening outside under the stars. Sam cuddled up to Nathan and went right to sleep. On Saturday, we headed to Great Falls National Park and did some repelling. YES, rock repelling. Totally out of my comfort zone and remember my t...