Here are a few pictures to recap our November. It was a beautiful month full of a mixture of Indian summer + nippy winter days. Harvest was completed, projects were accomplished, and Bible Bee was attended + finished, amongst other things.
Here are a few of the “other things”.
Music practice!
Taylor + Rebecca raking leaves in the front yard.
Taking time for a much-needed break in the middle of study-Denver + Liz enjoying a thrilling fourwheeler ride!
Here we have one of our stellar vehicle-washing teams-Carson + Rebecca. Well, I believe Carson was doing most of the work. Rebecca was probably there more for the entertainment factor. It also is a commonly known fact around our house that she loves “visiting” Carson while he works in the shop, due to the fact that she loves to chat with him and keep him company.
His snack stash that she discovered in the top drawer of his tool bench may or may not also be a drawing factor. =)
There is never a lack of things to talk about in the Bontrager household, but this fall has been extra full in the information + growth departments, and there have been many a late night hash with various of the adults in our family. One night found the parents out on a date, Carson and Mitchell gone working, Allison in Mexico, and the littles in bed. Joshua and Denver and I did just fine keeping a very lively conversation going. =)
Liz, busy at work in the kitchen, concocting a delectable Nutella Cream Pie.
Our family worked in assisting with details for our church’s annual
Live Animal Christmas Play pie auction. Our church has done this for several years now and it has grown to be a very fun and lively church activity. Around $15,000 was raised to use for the LACP expenses. Praise the Lord!
Our last harvest days. There is just nothing like this sight!
Window washing before the snow flies!
View out the front window one chilly fall evening.
With November brought the beginning of LACP recording sessions! One of our favorite times of the year! (shows start tonight and run through Sunday night! We will be performing “Christmas Deliverance” seven times over the next 48 hours and we are so excited for it! Come join us!)
Little chef in training here!
Our Kombucha queen! She took over making our kombucha when Allison left for Mexico the beginning of October, and she did an absolutely fabulous job continuing on throughout November and currently!
The guys spent many late nights (and quite a few all-nighters!) out hauling for various farmers in the southern half of Iowa. They love their work and being involved now as part owners of the business.
Andddd…its beginning to look a lot like Christmas!! While Allison was working at the hotel Thanksgiving week, she began to decorate there for Christmas.
Josh brought Allison coffee one morning at the hotel and stayed to enjoy some quiet space to study for upcoming college tests. Allison loved the coffee and company!
Beautiful sunsets out back in our woods…
That thrilling moment when your dinner table conversation is interrupted by a rather loud commotion in the kitchen and mom exclaims, “The snap trapped!!!!!!” We all knew that she meant to say, “The trap snapped!!” but we got some good laughs out of that one.:) It was indeed a relief to catch the mouse that had been on the loose (and sighted numerous times) in the kitchen all day.
Party time!!
Food, friends, games, + gifts…these are what Bontrager birthday bashes are made of!
Mitchell + Denver treated themselves to a fun brothers night out, with a friend, to attend one of the Iowa games. It ended up being, as Mitchell said, “The best game I could’ve ever chosen to go to.” =)
Thanksgiving Day found us gathered with the Bontrager side @ my Grandma’s home.
Plenty of food for all!
Afternoon party time! So many good memories from many game sessions with the cousin crew. =)
Denver didn’t do much trapping this fall due to his involvement with Bible Bee, but he still managed to get a few sets out and bring home a couple of trophies.
While Liz was spending a morning at the hotel with Allison, she got in on a little “cleaning duty” with one of our maids!
This smiling lady is what I call the “force to be reckoned with” that drives our hotel. =) She loves coming up with new ideas, implementing them, hiring, occasionally firing, deep cleaning, and making things run like clockwork. She recently put into effect a new dress code complete with classy new polos! Above, enjoying a little chocolate treat dropped off for her by a friend, while she was working one day.
LACP rehearsals started the last week of November. This is our church auditorium in the middle of a rehearsal. Not much to look at…you should see what is happening in the front! =)
Denver, waxing and cleaning the combine after fall harvest was complete.
Carson always has many “irons in the fire” with his various mechanic projects. Here he was fixing up another four wheeler to sell.
Josh painting sets for the LACP @ church.
Cinnamon roll making crew! Allison made rolls and then Denver + Taylor were the delivery team who took them around with LACP invitations to give to our neighbors.
We couldn’t really and truly have November happen without making DONUTS! This was the first time for fall 2016 and they were just as yummy as ever. We may or may not have delivered some to the guys…and then all eaten some for snacks…and eaten more for lunch…and even had a few for breakfast the next day. =)
This little cutter is absolutely revolutionary! Cuts the donut AND the hole at the same time!
Ta Da!
My favorite picture from the day. Little miss sneaking a random bite?!
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“In everything GIVE THANKS:
for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
1 Thessalonians 5:18
Lov this post has has brightened up my day it cute funny and sweet crazy how Christmas play is tonight ahhhh yay have fun with that can't wait for recap on it hugs lov u guys an God bless u guys
Love these happy snapshots! And those donuts look crazy delish, wow. 🙂
I don't mean to be nosey, but are the Bowers your cousins? We've met them before, but we've never put to 2 and 2 together.
No, we aren't related to them! Just close friends!
Thanks for the reply! I thought that the Bowers were your cousins because of a caption on a picture of your family with the Bowers. It said, "having fun with the cousin crew". I know how it is to have close friends that feel like cousins, though! BTW, that was a funny question about the bare feet! 😉 We certainly understand why y'all do that because we live on a farm and we garden (bare foot sometimes!) too. Great response! Y'all have a blessed Season celebrating Christ's birth. I appreciate your family and ministry. Keep up the good work for Christ!
One thing I am wondering about is all the bare feet. Isn't it a danger to work with all those garden tools with unprotected feet? And are there not a lot of infections, bacteria and such you can pick up from the soil? Has anyone ever broken toes, impaled their feet with a tool or gotten infection from the soil? Just wondering…you guys are way braver than I am. A few broken toes when I was younger, and I now never go anywhere without something on my feet! 🙂 Please let me know…just wondering how you do it!
Bare feet on the farm/garden is all we've ever known! It seems that something about living in the country and being in constant contact with the earth, seems to build up a very strong resistance to sickness + disease. We have been blessed to have no broken bones in our family (a few fractures + sprains though!) But there have been an untold number of times where we had cuts that would've normally required stitches, that we choose to heal + care for ourselves. And we all managed just fine. =)
So yes, maybe for others who haven't been exposed,, it would be more of an issue, but I think because we have grown up surrounded by those things you mentioned, it probably doesn't affect us as much.
Relying on your instanct is tough for most of us. It takes years to build confidence. Frankly it takes more than just happening to happen.