Courtship=A relationship/process begun with full approval of both set of parents (or an accountability couple, if not possible) with the intent to consider marriage, and to become acquainted through family and group activities.

It's an old fashioned word, with old fashioned ideas. The word itself, is not actually found in the Bible, but the principles are there. And, there are many different definitions of courting. Ours is defined above. Dating is not found in the Bible either, in word or principle. In fact, the process, actions and attitudes of dating are spoken against in God's Word.  Having dated ourselves, Paul and I want far better for our girls. Dating is not the way to go! We do not want heartbreak and/or regret for our children.

We have prayed for the life mates of both of our girls since before they were born and knew it would have to be God's doing to help our girls find guys who are first of all, Christian and second, as innocent as our girls and third...willing to court instead of date." (not to mention from an intact family) There were times when I wondered if such guys still existed for our girls in this day and age. But, I kept praying and trusting in the Lord to provide.

Well, our Amy has found such a guy. He has been more than willing to abide by our principles; in fact, according to his mother, he was quite happy to learn that we are for courting instead of dating. He's pretty much been a step ahead of us the whole way. So, David and Amy are "seeing each other" with the blessing of both sets of parents in many normal, every day situations with other people around and he is getting to know our family from spending time with us, too. (for those of you who know our family...you know what he's in for! LOL) So far, we have seen nothing but signs that God has brought these "kids" together. Paul says he has a lot less heartburn than he was expecting. (but don't tell David that, k? haha) We all have a peace about it. We are being blessed by them and having fun getting to know David and his family. They are delightful. (and freaks like us! That's a compliment in our family LOL) He's a great kid, okay he's almost 19, but that's still a kid to us "old folks."

Well, I'm sure you'll hear more about this in the future (much to their dismay...not really-I got their permission to post about them). Whether they end up getting married or not, we know they are doing this God's way and our families are praying for each other and God' will is ultimately to come to pass. We know God has only plans to prosper them and not to harm them and to give them a future and a hope. (just as it is with all of us!) Here are a picture that I took at the fair last weekend... 

 (Reese, with Amy 8-25-07)

Reese is a great dog! He sings, says "I love you", cuddles, counts his people to make sure we're all here, comforts you when you're down, makes you laugh and much more.

Well, Saturday morning Paul and I made the 1+ hour drive to Emmett, Idaho to return our dog, Reese to the Pet Adoption League where we got him nearly a year ago. Reese is a great dog, but unfortunately, there were extenuating circumstances. For instance, he recently started clearing our 6ft fence and the neighbors seemed to frown on that. We had to have him tied up or in the house at all times and this is a very energetic dog. It just wasn't fair to him. He'd do very well with agility courses because he's easy to train and eager to please...and loves jumping. His level of energy just didn't really fit with our lifestyle of homeschooling for several hours a day. Although he did adapt to our schedule, he would have preferred being outside running to and fro all day long.

There is also the allergy/asthma issue. I think I had pretty much adjusted to him, but I have family members and friends who were pleading with me to get rid of him during my last serious bout with asthma. They were more concerned about me than the dog for some reason. haha

I have asked my husband to think about letting the PAL know that we would take him back if they absolutely could not find him a home rather than having them put him down. He's too GREAT a dog to come to that fate before his second birthday. He said he'd "think about it." So, now I wait. Patiently? Well, try to anyway.

My husband is really the other reason we took him back. In hindsight, we probably should've taken him back before the two week trial period ended. Although Paul liked Reese, he just didn't grow up with animals around. They had a couple outdoor cats, but that's about it.  He didn't like him getting under foot and he really didn't like the hair (Reese was a shedding type of dog), especially on his work clothes. I can understand his frustration and I respect that. So, in order to honor my husband, I went with him to take Reese back even though it was extremely hard for me. In the end, I had to run out of the office, as Reese tried to follow, and bawl my head off out by the car. Fortunately, we were headed to the fair where we just had a blast and didn't really think about him the rest of the day, and we arrived home too late and tired to notice much that he was gone. That was a blessing.

On Sunday, however, as I went about my business and went out to check out another beautiful Idaho sunset, I saw his food/water bowls, toys, brush, dog house, chains, etc...and again broke down into tears. I then gathered everything up and put it away so I couldn't be reminded.  Reese will surely be missed...selfishly I wanted to keep him, but loving him and my husband meant doing what was best for him for both.  I pray he finds the perfect home to fit his needs.