just some things.

h e l l o ! 

what shall i tell you? the question i ask myself when i sit down to write a little something for you all. i know you most likely just want to hear what is going on in northwest arkansas but if you have any questions or want to hear about something in particular send me a message & i will try my best to respond. 

these past few weeks we have been working on being timely here at the ranch. previously if the girls were late to meal time it had been decided that they would have to eat outside. well it has been quite lovely here in arkansas so it really did not seem like a consequence that was actually getting the point across & was also not very practical for how our mealtime works here. so the decision was made that if we were late, there would be no talking during that meal. now talking is important to these girls so this really got the point across. a few meals have been eaten in silence. this definitely causes interesting feelings between the girls. especially if one thought they had time to quick do something & didn't make it back to the rug before the clock hit meal time. consequences are not just for meal time. i know ms. brooke has consequences for late arrival to school. it most definitely feels like everything is running in a much more organized way since this has all been immplemented. however some of the ranchers have been having a hard time with the fact that they cannot control each others speed of getting things done. 

on the 11th a very white 12 passenger nissan van arrived at raising hope ranch & it was welcomed with great excitement. it really was perfect timing for we had a lovely adventure planned for the next day. we did not celebrate labour day here at the ranch but informed the girls that we were planning something pretty cool for tuesday the 12th. thursday morning we told the girls we were going to begin reading Esther together for devotions. after reading the first chapter ms brooke announced that we were going to branson to watch Esther at sight & sound. this was very loudly accepted news. monday evening we told the girls they could sleep in a little & they could stay in pajamas for chores. tuesday morning. the highly anticipated day. it was a drizzly morning. the energy & excitment levels in the house were at an all time high. we very quickly completed horse chores & arrived up at the house with plenty of time to spare before breakfast. i took the ranchers to the front porch & we did some stretching in hopes to calm every one down. there we sat in a line listening to the rain hit the tin roof & the birds sing. birds singing in the rain. it made me smile. when rainy times come in life don't we want to just stop our singing. maybe we can learn from the birds. we did some deep breathing & laid there until our breakfast was ready. a pancake feast on the back porch. showers. & then the girls began to get fancy. dressing up is a big thing for a number of the ranchers here. it was fun to see them so excited with their outfits. i helped two of the girls with their hair & then raced to get myself prepared to leave. everyone got loaded up into our lovely van & we were on our way. on time right at 11:30. i was surprised with how well the 2.5 hr drive went. everyone seemed to really get along. we listened to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang for a small portion of the journey & this brought great laughs among the girls. we had packed some chicken wraps so we found a park to quick take a rest at & then zoomed over to sight & sound. we used the buddy system so each of us had a girl we kept by our side. smiles were permanently pasted on the faces of our girls. the joy in each of their eyes as they watched the production unfold before them was worth everything. it was definitely a hit. pizza was picked up for supper & home we drove. the first while all that was discussed was Esther. the things that stood out to each of the ranchers was very interesting to hear. & then the exhaustion creeped over. a rancher fell asleep on my lap. & my other seat mate stared out the window. when i asked what she was thinking about she just responded with a silent "nothing" something tells me there were actually a lot of thoughts swirling in her mind :) 

everyday holds something new & you never know what it will be. a strange question that causes you to really think & try to form an acceptable answer. new feelings that need to be talked over. something that worked yesterday to calm the ranchers down just doesn't work the next day. the list could go on.& some things just stay the same. for example a rancher that is only allowed to speak 6 words at a time with minute breaks between always seems to have tears at some point during the day. 

& then there are things in life that are not ranch related that have brought me joy.

. i got approval to attend haleigh & aarons wedding the end of november in copeland. this is a very happy thing for me. she asked me to be her bridesmaid. i feel honoured :) 

. i went to school yesterday & helped andreé (ms. jantz) with art. her students are just very adorable & being there kind of made me miss the teaching life. 

. i have got to attend a few volleyball games which brings me a whole lot of joy. 

. a package was delivered with my name on it. that was a very nice surprise & it was filled with a very lovely assortment of things. like sour candy :) 

. phone calls & messages on my off days. 

just know this. God is here. working on this ranch. this blog has the name FOR HIS GLORY for a reason. i am here working in this place but its not for me. its all for Him. i give all the glory to Him. He gives the strength for each day. He provides the words. it is because of Him that i am able to wake up each day with a want to help these girls. 

continue to pray. 

till next time 

ms. tif.