Theme Verse: Psalm 34:8-9 “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man who trusts in Him. Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him.”

Musically: Plays piano, violin. Sings lead, harmony parts. Songwriter.

“Hello, this is Rachel!” As family secretary, I use this phrase many times throughout each day while answering the phone or e-mails. I greatly enjoy serving my dad by helping organize our ministry schedule, website updates, the blog, and keeping in touch with our prayer partners and friends. I feel very blessed to be the oldest of our crew -- and treasure each of my brothers and sisters as ‘best-of-friends.’ I’m usually known as a ring-leader of ‘us children’, getting my siblings involved in countless adventures -- starting a school newsletter…teaching Bible-clubs…singing in parts…water balloon fights, and the list could go on! Since completing my formal home education, I’ve enjoyed the opportunity of teaching 3 years at a Christian school, giving piano lessons, and providing elderly care and companionship. My desire is to deepen my walk with the Lord in His Word, and to share His love with those I meet. Life is an adventure and I’m so grateful to serve a God Whose mercies are new every morning.

If you were to visit our home very early in the morning, you’d probably find me heading down the stairs for my quiet time. I’ve always enjoyed the stillness of the house before the patter of feet are heard overhead, and the Lord always uses this time to instruct me with His Word, preparing me for the day’s activities. I also love to learn, and my studies have usually been directed to the area of health. Because of this, I spend much of my day in the kitchen preparing hearty meals, and have become known as our ‘family doctor’ for ailments ranging from tiny slivers to a backache. Working ’behind the scenes’ on our various family projects, and sharing everything from Scripture to new recipes, my desire is to encourage others -- while preparing myself for wherever the Lord calls.

Theme Verse: Colossians 3:17 - "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him."

Musically: Plays harp. Sings lead.

Howdy! I am the fifth child in the family and enjoy a wide variety of pursuits that keep me both busy and productive. When we are home I enjoy working for Dad’s sandblasting and painting company. This gives me opportunity for lots of physical labor in the outdoors. I also help out at a local dairy farm. Matthias, Stephen and I work together on creating most of our family’s musical arrangements, so many of my evenings are spent ‘jamming‘. This is a highlight for me as I love spending times with my siblings. I also like almost any form of physical activity and enjoy studying fitness and nutrition. I am grateful for the opportunity I have to travel with my family and sing of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

I’ve grown several inches recently (thanks to my age and Ruth’s good cooking) but my younger brother has, too, and is already taller than me. That’s okay, because we do lots of things together. I’ve been working at a dairy farm most afternoons, and I enjoy the responsibility of running the milking operation -- and the chance put my drivers license to use. I also really enjoy my dobro. I was able to purchase a very high quality instrument, and that makes practice fun. We guys usually spend our evenings at home jamming and coming up with new melodies together. I also like acting, and was able to play a couple parts this year in dramas for various children’s ministries.

Like Matthias said, I shot up this year and now I’m taller than all of my sisters. My feet are growing, too, as I already wear a size 14 shoe! Just like Josiah -- as my feet have grown, my voice has dropped, and I am learning to sing bass. I love to make things with my hands: wood working especially, using our scroll saw and router bits. I spend hours in our basement coming up with creative gifts and toys. I try to practice mandolin a lot, and really enjoy it when all the guys get out their instruments to jam. I still play harmonica, though not quite as much as I used too. I love the outdoors, and am always ready for a good game of football or ultimate frisbee. Eating my sisters’ good cooking, school work, and outdoor activity pretty well round out my ‘interest’ list!

Hello! Meeting new people and chatting has always been fun for me, so I hope you enjoy this short bio. I like to be the ‘mommy’ of my little sisters and brothers -- planning surprises and projects with them, especially when we travel on the bus. Whenever we celebrate a birthday on the bus, I make sure the special person wakes up to the surprise of streamers and balloons! I also really enjoy listening to my older siblings talk and laugh, especially in the evening time. I am not a early bird, although I am getting better at it! During the day I can often be found reading (I LOVE reading!!!), doing school, playing outside, playing piano, writing letters, scrap booking, baking, or planning surprises for my friends and family. I am currently working to memorize Matthew 5-7 and my favorite book of the Bible is Esther.

I am the horse lover of the family. I play horses, dream horses, and read about horses. I really enjoy it when our family visits people who have horses, and let us ride them! That is definitely the highlight of any trip we take. In the bus I have a middle bunk, and I have a whole list of ‘projects’ that go with me on every trip. I easily get excited about things, but when people first meet me I tend to be more on the quiet side. I love climbing trees, playing games with my brothers and bike riding, as well as some homemaking things like crocheting and other hand projects and crafts. School work is okay, math being my best subject. My favorite thing about traveling is being able to be with my brothers and sisters!

Hi! I'm Alaythia, and right now I'm in the middle of losing my teeth! Since learning to read a few years ago, I love to read books and I have started working my way through the Bible. I love spending time with my older sisters, and since Charissa was born, I now have a little sister, too! I can't wait until Charissa grows big enough so that she can share a bed with me. People tell me I look and act a lot like my big sister Bethany -- Grandpa calls us look-alike twins! I’m glad, because I love her a lot. I help her with laundry and am a people-person, too -- I love to talk and ask questions. Writing letters, doing my school, and riding a bike are a few things I enjoy. Oh, and traveling with my family

When I grow up, I want to be a pilot, just like my brother Josiah. I like to watch him study; and sometimes he shows me how things work. I have my own savings account, and I am saving my money to buy an airplane someday so I can take my friends on rides. I also like trains and trucks, and anything else that does big things. I love my little sister Charissa a lot, and smother her with kisses and show her my toys. I'm learning how to read, ride bike, do chores, and stand still on stage when we sing. I have some red cowboy boots that go everywhere with me; they are a couple sizes too big, so they should last me a while. It'll be a sad day when I outgrow them. My hardest project this year was memorizing Psalm 19, ‘cause there are a lot of words in there. But Mommy helps me, and tells me lots of Bible stories, too, and I like that.

Well, as the newest member of our family, I’m just a little overwhelmed with learning all these new faces and voices I live with every day. But they are very good to me -- sometimes they make such funny faces I can’t help but laugh. For some reason that only seems to encourage them. I’m glad I know how to walk now as I can explore everything. Oh, and I love to talk, but my family has a hard time understanding me, even though I use hand gestures! There’s lots of music and talking at our house. I just love it when one of the boys gets the guitar out, ‘cause they play me pretty songs and let me feel the strings. Maybe I’ll learn to play when I get older. But for now, I’ll just keep working at all the things a baby is supposed to do -- growing, learning, and keeping my family happy. I figure that’s a full -time job for me!