Our "Library"

This summer I was sure wishing for a library to take my kids to. They had read almost every {kid} book in our house. It was at this point that I began to have a little bit of a "poor us...we don't have a library" attitude. I have great memories of my mom taking my brothers, sister, and I to the library during the summer time and we would spend lots of time reading during our summer vacation. Libraries are just so much fun for kids who like to read. A book can take you so many places....it's like you are really there. All of the kids have discovered the joy of opening a book and escaping to a place of their choosing while still in the comfort of our home.
Soon after summer began we found out that another American family in Tallinn was leaving and they had some things they were selling. We planned a time to go to their house to see what was for sale. Sitting there were several boxes of books!!! There were books to choose from that each of my kids would enjoy....little golden books, Clifford, I Spy, beginner readers, Little House on the Prairie, American Girl, Janette Oke's Animal Friends, Boxcar Children {a favorite in our house}, and more. Of course I got all the ones that were on "mommy's approved reading list"....all for about $20. What a deal! It was so much fun to add all of our "new" books to the shelves of our personal "library".
Now isn't that just like God? He provided what we needed {wanted} at the time we needed it. His timing is always perfect! I love to look back and remember these special things God does for us to show His love. Many, many times God does things like this for me personally and also for our family which reminds me daily of His love and care.


Take a few minutes and think about the ways God shows His love for you.

Summer Day

Since we were already staying in Tallinn for our July 4th celebration, we decided to spend the night and go to the zoo on Monday. We appreciate our missionary friends, Matt and Denise Graziano, for making their home a "hotel". They were very gracious and made us feel right at home. Monday morning we enjoyed a little bit more time to fellowship and then headed off to the zoo. The zoo was interesting....some of it was beautiful and spacious while other parts looked like prison cells for the poor animals. I've also never seen so many electric fences around cages with signs warning of dangerous animals. One such fence was around some kind of bird...sort of looked like a vulture but much bigger and uglier. Some little monkeys held our attention the longest - there were about 15 in the cage and they were all so playful.









Our biggest disappointment was the fact that the children's petting area was closed. We were still able to see lots of animals...polar bears, monkeys, lion, birds, eagles, brown bear, seals, horses, elephants, and more. It had been a long time since we had taken the kids to a zoo. We enjoyed our time together and also the beautiful sunshine that we miss so much through the winter months. Yes, it was a little warm...and we got hot and thirsty, but all to soon summer will be gone. So, we are thankful for each day of summer.

After our time at the zoo we went to MACK'S BBQ. We had been told that it was like an American restaraunt. Several things we noticed right away that were different than other restaraunts here - they brought us water shortly after we were seated, they put ice in our sodas that we ordered, we recognized many dishes on the menu as typical "American" food. Here are some things that they forgot to do "American" style - free refills, air conditioning, good service, and "to-go" containers. Nevertheless, we enjoyed our meal!





We picked this special restaraunt since we were celebrating my honey's birthday!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RON...YOU ARE THE BEST!!!