Hey all,
The last few weeks we have been touring eastern Canada. We've posted the latest blog entry on our josties.com site which now has a blog.
Here is a link the latest entry:
http://www.josties.com/2010/05/midway-eastern-tour-update/
We are currently enjoying Prince Edward Island. It's so beautiful and peaceful here. Meeting new friends and connecting with old friends, too. God is so faithful.
Blessings in Christ,
Josiah
Monday, May 24, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Spring Update
Hello all,
It's been far too long since my last post on here so I thought it was time to give a brief update. God's faithfulness continues to shine through so strong to all of us. Some days I am overwhelmed at His goodness and mercy to us. He is so worthy to be trusted!
Precious family
We are planning another spring tour that will Lord willing include going to the east coast again. We are leaving around April 18th and need to be home around June. 16th. Would really covet your prayers for the trip. We just want to be so used by God and that we would surrender ourselves to Him so that He would shine through. It's all about Him.
Our family is also about to release a new CD titled, "Story of My Life". Mom has once again written all the songs and we pray the CD will bless you and draw you closer to our Savior. I'm excited about sharing it with you all. We are scheduled to receive the CDs from the manufacturer next week. (Around April. 1st).
You can listen to sound clips and order the CD on the revamped www.josties.com website. You can also keep up with our travels with the blog there.
Jesse and Heidi are doing well and blessed to have two children in John-Michael and Sophia. Jon and Sharla are blessed with two as well in Lucy and Nathan. They also have one on the way! It's so cool having adorable little nieces and nephews around. We love them all to pieces. :)
Aunt Amy-Joy with her four nieces and nephews.
Entire Jost Clan
Joel recently started the goal of releasing one short film a week on YouTube via the JostieFlicks channel. If you have any interest you can watch some them here. :)
Have a lot of great fun times and conversations with Joel and Emz
I continue to stay really busy with Siah Design. It's sometimes a challenge though to keep a balanced work week and not let my work become too much of the focus. As with any career, there is the temptation to make it the center instead of making God the center and letting all that you do glorify Him. Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Cor. 10:31
Eventually I hope to only need to work a few days a week to provide and then the other part of the week I could devote to wherever else God would have me serving.
On another note, a few weeks ago I had a little scare with my upright bass. It fell off it's stand and broke into a few pieces. I had JUST put on brand new strings so it was a bit hard to see it happen. We weren't 100% sure we would be able to fix it but after some phone calls/research with some Luthiers and Dad's help we were able to get it fixed. It's now back to fine working order with the new strings back on. Phew... :) The bass was given to me back in 2007 as a gift. I continue to be so grateful for it.
Before being fixed
After. :)
That's a brief update. Not sure how long it will be till my next post but I'll try to keep posts more regular.
Keep your eyes on the Savior and continue to serve Him and your family wherever you are.
In Christ,
Josiah
It's been far too long since my last post on here so I thought it was time to give a brief update. God's faithfulness continues to shine through so strong to all of us. Some days I am overwhelmed at His goodness and mercy to us. He is so worthy to be trusted!
Precious familyOur family is also about to release a new CD titled, "Story of My Life". Mom has once again written all the songs and we pray the CD will bless you and draw you closer to our Savior. I'm excited about sharing it with you all. We are scheduled to receive the CDs from the manufacturer next week. (Around April. 1st).
You can listen to sound clips and order the CD on the revamped www.josties.com website. You can also keep up with our travels with the blog there.
Jesse and Heidi are doing well and blessed to have two children in John-Michael and Sophia. Jon and Sharla are blessed with two as well in Lucy and Nathan. They also have one on the way! It's so cool having adorable little nieces and nephews around. We love them all to pieces. :)
Aunt Amy-Joy with her four nieces and nephews. 
Entire Jost ClanJoel recently started the goal of releasing one short film a week on YouTube via the JostieFlicks channel. If you have any interest you can watch some them here. :)
Have a lot of great fun times and conversations with Joel and Emz I continue to stay really busy with Siah Design. It's sometimes a challenge though to keep a balanced work week and not let my work become too much of the focus. As with any career, there is the temptation to make it the center instead of making God the center and letting all that you do glorify Him. Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Cor. 10:31
Eventually I hope to only need to work a few days a week to provide and then the other part of the week I could devote to wherever else God would have me serving.
On another note, a few weeks ago I had a little scare with my upright bass. It fell off it's stand and broke into a few pieces. I had JUST put on brand new strings so it was a bit hard to see it happen. We weren't 100% sure we would be able to fix it but after some phone calls/research with some Luthiers and Dad's help we were able to get it fixed. It's now back to fine working order with the new strings back on. Phew... :) The bass was given to me back in 2007 as a gift. I continue to be so grateful for it.
Before being fixed
After. :)That's a brief update. Not sure how long it will be till my next post but I'll try to keep posts more regular.
Keep your eyes on the Savior and continue to serve Him and your family wherever you are.
In Christ,
Josiah
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Western Fall Tour '09
It's been way too long since my last post. My life has been so packed I really haven't made any time for keeping up any type of blog. I will however have a quick update.
Had a really busy summer. We were able to sing at a few Jamborees, do a lot of yard work and keep up with everyday life.
On Sept. 15th we left for the a fall tour. It will be about 4 weeks long.
At the moment we are on Vancouver Island. We've already done 7 or 8 concerts this tour. It's been a really blessed trip thus far. We were able to sing in Aidrie, Kelowna, Salmon Arm, Tappen, Victoria, Courtney and Nanoose Bay. It's been really good. Fellowshipped with a lot of precious people.
Tomorrow (Oct. 1st) we will be heading back to the mainland. We'll do a few more concerts in the area and then head into the states to do a couple there and then head home again.
I think I'll need to delegate this blog posting job to one of my younger siblings soon. :) Anyone want to nominate one of them? :)
God bless!
Josiah
Had a really busy summer. We were able to sing at a few Jamborees, do a lot of yard work and keep up with everyday life.
On Sept. 15th we left for the a fall tour. It will be about 4 weeks long.
At the moment we are on Vancouver Island. We've already done 7 or 8 concerts this tour. It's been a really blessed trip thus far. We were able to sing in Aidrie, Kelowna, Salmon Arm, Tappen, Victoria, Courtney and Nanoose Bay. It's been really good. Fellowshipped with a lot of precious people.
Tomorrow (Oct. 1st) we will be heading back to the mainland. We'll do a few more concerts in the area and then head into the states to do a couple there and then head home again.
I think I'll need to delegate this blog posting job to one of my younger siblings soon. :) Anyone want to nominate one of them? :)
God bless!
Josiah
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Final Leg of Tour
As I type this I am back at home. It's hard to believe all the amazing people and places we saw on the trip now that we are home.
Last post we had just arrived at the Brown family's home in St. Andrews, New Brunswick. We had a fun time with them. We arrived at their home on June 1st (Tuesday) night. They have 6 children. We had a great time together. The next morning they took us to the Bay of Fundy and walked out while the tide was low.
Our family with the Brown Family by the Bay of Fundy:
Clam diggers at Bay of Fundy:
That evening we did a concert in the Bayside Baptist Church.
At the Bayside Baptist Church. It was the only concert we did without a sound system this tour as it was a pretty small church with good acoustics.
The following day we left the Browns and traveled to Oromocto, NB to do a concert with the Oromocto Baptist Church. We stayed with our great new friend, James Carr. We both have a love for antiques and history so we hit it off really well. He took the little ones fishing in the afternoon by the stream near his place and after we had untangled all the lines and pulled out all the hooks ;) we headed over to the church to set up for the concert. It was really neat how God arranged this concert so fast. James had invited our family to do a concert in his church after being at our Geary concert and it worked out to do it the very next week! We were blown away at the turn out for a Wednesday night with such little notice. The church was packed. Several of them were new friends from Geary. :D They were a very responsive crowd. Right at the end of the concert Mr. Carr presented everyone in our family with a New Brunswick flag and pin. A really cool way to remember all the awesome people there.
After the concert a couple ladies took our whole family out for ice cream:
We left our great New Brunswick friends Thursday morning. Before we left, James and his parents served us the most amazing breakfast. I haven't really gone into detail much this tour on food but I really want to share what we had: :)
-Biscuits
-Hashbrown Cassorole
-Hashbrown Patties
-Yogurt
-Appe Sauce
-Cinnamon Rolls
-Baked Beans
-Toast and Jam
-Rhubarb Sauce
-Scrambled Eggs
-Eggs Omelet
-Strawberry Strudels
-Strawberry Shortcake
-Pumpkin Pie
-Juices
-Coffee
-Chocolate Fudge
-Several kinds of cold cereal
Shot of some of the breakfast:
I don't think I had ever been so full after a breakfast! Bless the Carr fam and all the neighbors that contributed. :D
James with our family:
We left Canada that day with our hearts (and bellies) very full. We traveled across the border and stayed near Boston on Thursday night. The following day we spent quite a while exploring the historic locations near Boston. It was fascinating to see so many important historic point in US History. We were able to get a tour of the Battle Greens in Lexington (where the shot heard round the world was fired) and other really interesting places.
Standing where the colonials stood when the british met them and the war started. There was a guy there that gave our family the a tour whole history on it. It was very interesting.
Monument on the Battle Greens in Lexington:
Judah re-enacting :)
Hannah in an ancient tree near that important, famous bridge in the revolutionary war that I forget the name of (lol):
While near Boston a friend of Joel and mine, Jean-Marc came down from New Hampshire to spend the day with us. It was really great to hang out with him again.
Joel, Jean-Marc and I:
Friday night we stayed in Schenectady, NY. Saturday was Judah's 6th birthday! He's such a gift to our family and we love him to pieces.
Judah having breakfast in bed:
Later that day we traveled to the McMichael family. They have 5 children. We had a really edifying stay with them. Sunday afternoon we did a concert in their backyard. It was mostly homeschool families in attendance.
It was fun to do an outside concert.
After the concert we had a BBQ and visited late into the evening with everyone.
The young people there really enjoyed old english/folk dancing:
Monday morning we said our good-byes to the McMichael family after a blessed stay there.
Breakfast at the McMichaels: (MMmmm.. )
The McMichael family sans Mr. McMichael who wasn't around for the pic:
Over the next few days we did a lot of sitting in the van (duh?) as we traveled and stayed in hotels across the states. The following nights we stayed in:
Toledo, PE
Des Moines, IA
Sioux Falls, SD
Rapid City, SD
Sheridan, WY
BTW, on the road I pulled Judahs first loose tooth: :D
On Saturday we traveled from Sheridan, WY to the King family near Billings, MT. Once again had a great visit with them. We played some whiffle ball with the kids. Also played some intense ping pong with Mr. (Jeff) King. I won't share the scores...
Judah with Will King:
Cup stacking tournament:
The King and Jost kids:
We left the King home Sunday morning and heading to Great Falls, MT to stock up for groceries for when we get home. Sunday evening we pulled into our yard here in southen Alberta extremely grateful to the Lord for His amazing goodness, mercy and grace. The tour really went awesome at all the glory goes to the Lord. There were some tough moments on tour but it was so worth it.
Glad to be home:
We were so excited to see Jon, Sharla and Lucy the day after we got home. Lucy is just adorable. She's walking like crazy now.
Lucy walking from Hannah to Amy :D :
Since arriving home we've been doing yard work and catching up on a ton of other things.
Until later!
In Christ,
Josiah
Last post we had just arrived at the Brown family's home in St. Andrews, New Brunswick. We had a fun time with them. We arrived at their home on June 1st (Tuesday) night. They have 6 children. We had a great time together. The next morning they took us to the Bay of Fundy and walked out while the tide was low.
Our family with the Brown Family by the Bay of Fundy:
Clam diggers at Bay of Fundy:
That evening we did a concert in the Bayside Baptist Church.
At the Bayside Baptist Church. It was the only concert we did without a sound system this tour as it was a pretty small church with good acoustics.
The following day we left the Browns and traveled to Oromocto, NB to do a concert with the Oromocto Baptist Church. We stayed with our great new friend, James Carr. We both have a love for antiques and history so we hit it off really well. He took the little ones fishing in the afternoon by the stream near his place and after we had untangled all the lines and pulled out all the hooks ;) we headed over to the church to set up for the concert. It was really neat how God arranged this concert so fast. James had invited our family to do a concert in his church after being at our Geary concert and it worked out to do it the very next week! We were blown away at the turn out for a Wednesday night with such little notice. The church was packed. Several of them were new friends from Geary. :D They were a very responsive crowd. Right at the end of the concert Mr. Carr presented everyone in our family with a New Brunswick flag and pin. A really cool way to remember all the awesome people there.
After the concert a couple ladies took our whole family out for ice cream:
We left our great New Brunswick friends Thursday morning. Before we left, James and his parents served us the most amazing breakfast. I haven't really gone into detail much this tour on food but I really want to share what we had: :)
-Biscuits
-Hashbrown Cassorole
-Hashbrown Patties
-Yogurt
-Appe Sauce
-Cinnamon Rolls
-Baked Beans
-Toast and Jam
-Rhubarb Sauce
-Scrambled Eggs
-Eggs Omelet
-Strawberry Strudels
-Strawberry Shortcake
-Pumpkin Pie
-Juices
-Coffee
-Chocolate Fudge
-Several kinds of cold cereal
Shot of some of the breakfast:
I don't think I had ever been so full after a breakfast! Bless the Carr fam and all the neighbors that contributed. :D
James with our family:
We left Canada that day with our hearts (and bellies) very full. We traveled across the border and stayed near Boston on Thursday night. The following day we spent quite a while exploring the historic locations near Boston. It was fascinating to see so many important historic point in US History. We were able to get a tour of the Battle Greens in Lexington (where the shot heard round the world was fired) and other really interesting places.
Standing where the colonials stood when the british met them and the war started. There was a guy there that gave our family the a tour whole history on it. It was very interesting.
Monument on the Battle Greens in Lexington:
Judah re-enacting :)
Hannah in an ancient tree near that important, famous bridge in the revolutionary war that I forget the name of (lol):
While near Boston a friend of Joel and mine, Jean-Marc came down from New Hampshire to spend the day with us. It was really great to hang out with him again.
Joel, Jean-Marc and I:
Friday night we stayed in Schenectady, NY. Saturday was Judah's 6th birthday! He's such a gift to our family and we love him to pieces.
Judah having breakfast in bed:
Later that day we traveled to the McMichael family. They have 5 children. We had a really edifying stay with them. Sunday afternoon we did a concert in their backyard. It was mostly homeschool families in attendance.
It was fun to do an outside concert.
After the concert we had a BBQ and visited late into the evening with everyone.
The young people there really enjoyed old english/folk dancing:
Monday morning we said our good-byes to the McMichael family after a blessed stay there.
Breakfast at the McMichaels: (MMmmm.. )
The McMichael family sans Mr. McMichael who wasn't around for the pic:
Over the next few days we did a lot of sitting in the van (duh?) as we traveled and stayed in hotels across the states. The following nights we stayed in:
Toledo, PE
Des Moines, IA
Sioux Falls, SD
Rapid City, SD
Sheridan, WY
BTW, on the road I pulled Judahs first loose tooth: :D
On Saturday we traveled from Sheridan, WY to the King family near Billings, MT. Once again had a great visit with them. We played some whiffle ball with the kids. Also played some intense ping pong with Mr. (Jeff) King. I won't share the scores...
Judah with Will King:
Cup stacking tournament:
The King and Jost kids:
We left the King home Sunday morning and heading to Great Falls, MT to stock up for groceries for when we get home. Sunday evening we pulled into our yard here in southen Alberta extremely grateful to the Lord for His amazing goodness, mercy and grace. The tour really went awesome at all the glory goes to the Lord. There were some tough moments on tour but it was so worth it.
Glad to be home:
We were so excited to see Jon, Sharla and Lucy the day after we got home. Lucy is just adorable. She's walking like crazy now.
Lucy walking from Hannah to Amy :D :
Since arriving home we've been doing yard work and catching up on a ton of other things.
Until later!
In Christ,
Josiah
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Quebec and Maritimes!
Wow, so much has happened since last post.
Last post we had just left the Hounsome home. On May. 15th we traveled to the Peters home near Aylmer. They have 9 kids and live on a farm. We did a concert in Aylmer on Friday night, May 15th. We were thrilled to see Elizabeth Heikoop (our cousin) at the concert! There was such a great spirit that night and we really appreciated the opportunity to minister in that area.
Visiting with Elizabeth and Nellie Heikoop after the concert:
The Peters showed us around the area the following day. It was neat to meet some Amish and see how they lived. We observed and participated in the busy asparagus harvest at the Peter's farm, too. They still make the most amazing whole wheat, organic tortilla's ever.
Grading asparagus with the Peters:
Eating some hot tamales :)
An Amish furniture store.. Really cool:
Sunday (May 17th) afternoon we traveled to Virgil, Ont. The place where the concert was held was filled with so many young families. We met some really neat people there. One of the families there were from Pennsylvania, the McMichaels, and they invited us to come to their area and do a concert there on our way home through the states.
Monday (May. 18th) we were able to travel around the Niagara area. It was awesome to explore Niagara-On-The-Lake and see the Niagara falls again. We also enjoyed the opportunity to get a lot of walking in that day...over 7 miles..
Mom and Dad by Niagara Falls:
The fam:
In the evening we traveled to the Mansfield home near Niagara. They have 3 children, 2 of which were adopted. It was really neat to hear their testimonies of how they were able to adopt their kids and how God has worked in the children.
Campfire with the Mansfields:
Johnny-Mike with a hat a little too heavy for his head:
The Mansfield family:
Tuesday (19th) we traveled all the way to Deux Montagnes (Two Montains) in the suburbs of Montreal to an AGC Church there. We stayed the night in the church and did a concert there the next day. The folks there were so warm and appreciative as they said they rarely get to hear English groups. Mom also loved the opportunity to connect and visit with Christine, a dear friend. It really felt like a foreign country with french exclusively on every sign. :)
Thursday (21st) we traveled from Montreal to Quebec City. It was so fascinating to walk through old Quebec along the St. Lawrence and see all the amazing history. In the evening we stayed at a People's Church near Quebec City.
In old Quebec City:
A lot of cool old shops around...
Friday (22nd) We traveled from Quebec City to Grand Falls, New Brunswick where we stayed in a hotel. It was so nice to see English again!
Saturday (23rd) we traveled to Geary, NB. We arrived there in the afternoon and set up our equipment for the morning service concert. We were billeted out that night. Jeremiah and I were billeted out to the Smith family and had a great time with them. All the rumors about how friendly the maritimers are is definitely true!
Sunday 24th we did a concert in the morning at the Geary Baptist Church. Wow, incredibly responsive folks! So much energy. The pastor and his wife there are really genuine, funny people. We attended their grad banquet late afternoon, singing a couple of songs, and Jesse spoke and I shared my testimony. At 7 pm we were back at the church for a full house and another very energetic crowd. A great new friend, James, from another church who was at that concert invited us back for a concert in their church later in June.
Singing in Geary (photo courtest of Ashley Smith):
Monday (25th) morning we left Geary and all our new friends to travel to the Marlowe and Rosalind Wood family on Prince Edward Island. We crossed over the Confederation Bridge from New Brunswick over to Prince Edward Island that afternoon. PEI is one of the most beautiful places in the world. So amazing. That evening we had a great time of fellowship with the Wood family and stayed at their home that night. They recently moved from B.C. and have a beautiful home and acreage! They are sure creative and industrious.
The Wood Family:
Eating with the Wood family :D :
Tuesday (26th) morning we left the Wood family and spent most of the day exploring the Island. We found a really cool secluded beach with the red rocks and cliffs. In the evening we headed to a cottage that the Robinson family had offered for our family to use. The Robinsons live about 1/4 mile from the cottage. They were really giving people. We had a turkey supper with them that night.
Wednesday we were able to explore more of the island. We visited Lucy Maud Montgomery's museum which was in her uncles home where she lived part time. I was able to sit in the same chair she did when she wrote, "Anne Of Green Gables"..Yea, pretty cool, I know. :)
Amy, Hannah and Emz by "Green Gables":
We also visited "Green Gables" and another really cool beach. Jeremiah, Joseph and Josh were even crazy enough to do some swimming. I pretty much freaked out from the cold water when it hit my ankles.
Some beach shots by the Atlantic Ocean on PEI:
Playing Frisbee:
Crazy kid (Jer) in the ice waters:
Joel filming for documentary:
We had a concert in Charlottetown that night at the Christian Reform Church. After the concert we were able to meet the Petroffsky ("Sky") family. They have a really neat music ministry and it was really refreshing to fellowship with them.
Thursday, in the morning we went to a wharf with the Robinsons and bought several (about 25) lobster directly from the fishermen. It's so much cheaper that way. It was really cool to see them bring the lobsters in.
Seeing the lobsters come in on the wharf:
Afterwards we headed out to visit some new friends, the Goehrings, that we had met at the concert the night before.
Visiting with the Goehrings:
Following that visit we went to the Sky home. They have an amazing home. They played some music for us there and did some Irish dancing. It was really cool! They really have a heart for the Lord and it we left really refreshed.
The Sky family doing us some music!
With the Sky's on top of their amazing home/bed and breakfast:
They have an awesome view of PEI:
That evening we headed over to the Robinson home again to have a huge lobster meal. It was the first time I had ever had lobster and I actually really enjoyed it. The Robinsons had a birthday cake for mom, too. :) Dad took Mom out for a special birthday dinner later that evening in Charlottetown while we continued to fellowship with the Robinsons.
Boiling lobster at the Robinsons:
They gave mom a birthday cake :) :
Friday was Mom's birthday! We had to leave first thing in the morning as we needed to reach the Ferry on time. It was hard to leave PEI. We had such an amazing time there! We took a ferry ride from PEI to Nova Scotia. That was a really cool experience for all of us!
On the ferry:
Once over to Nova Scotia we went to the Habermehl home. We did a concert in Dartmouth, NS that night at the Northbrook Bible Chapel. Jesse gave a talk on purity before the concert. It was a small church but it was full and at least half were young people. It is so great to hear how God is working in people's lives and hearing Dwight and Kristen's (our hosts) story was no exception.
Mrs. Habermehl giving mom a birthday cake that she made:
The Habermehl family:
Saturday we left the Habermahl home and traveled to the Halifax, NS where mom and dad reunited with their old Bible school friends, Larry and Karen Levy. Larry pastors a Vineyard church there. We set up our equipment that night in their church and were billeted out. Joel, Jer, Joseph and I were billeted out to Glen and Peggy Lucas' home. We stayed up with them that night and watched, "Faith Like Potatoes" for the first time.
Emily with Chelsea Nisbett, a talented musician from Halifax:
Glen and Peggy Lucas with their grand kids:
Visiting in the Levy home. The guy closest to the camera (Daniel) giving Joel some djembe tips. He also gave us a really nice roadie case!:
Sunday morning we did a concert at the Vineyard church. They were a very responsive crowd.
Concert in Halifax at the Vineyard church:
In the afternoon, Levy, Karen and their daughter Michelle took us to Peggy's Cove. It's a really awesome place.
Pictures from Peggy's Cove:
Judah with his new sailor hat!:
Amy and Hannah with their new friend, Michelle Levy:
Larry and Karen Levy:
Amy and Emz in the souvenir shop:
Monday morning we left our respective billets and headed to downtown Halifax to see the "Atlantic Maritime Museum". It was a fabulous experience. We were able to see several artifacts and historic notes about the Halifax Explosion, the Titanic and several other notable historic happenings.
In the Maritime Museum:
Hannah and Emily in a parking lot in St. John, NB.
We are staying with a family in St. Stephen, NB right now and have a concert tonight in Bayside, NB. Thanks AGAIN to all those who are praying!
In Christ,
Josiah
Last post we had just left the Hounsome home. On May. 15th we traveled to the Peters home near Aylmer. They have 9 kids and live on a farm. We did a concert in Aylmer on Friday night, May 15th. We were thrilled to see Elizabeth Heikoop (our cousin) at the concert! There was such a great spirit that night and we really appreciated the opportunity to minister in that area.
Visiting with Elizabeth and Nellie Heikoop after the concert:
The Peters showed us around the area the following day. It was neat to meet some Amish and see how they lived. We observed and participated in the busy asparagus harvest at the Peter's farm, too. They still make the most amazing whole wheat, organic tortilla's ever.
Grading asparagus with the Peters:
Eating some hot tamales :)
An Amish furniture store.. Really cool:
Sunday (May 17th) afternoon we traveled to Virgil, Ont. The place where the concert was held was filled with so many young families. We met some really neat people there. One of the families there were from Pennsylvania, the McMichaels, and they invited us to come to their area and do a concert there on our way home through the states.
Monday (May. 18th) we were able to travel around the Niagara area. It was awesome to explore Niagara-On-The-Lake and see the Niagara falls again. We also enjoyed the opportunity to get a lot of walking in that day...over 7 miles..
Mom and Dad by Niagara Falls:
The fam:
In the evening we traveled to the Mansfield home near Niagara. They have 3 children, 2 of which were adopted. It was really neat to hear their testimonies of how they were able to adopt their kids and how God has worked in the children.
Campfire with the Mansfields:
Johnny-Mike with a hat a little too heavy for his head:
The Mansfield family:
Tuesday (19th) we traveled all the way to Deux Montagnes (Two Montains) in the suburbs of Montreal to an AGC Church there. We stayed the night in the church and did a concert there the next day. The folks there were so warm and appreciative as they said they rarely get to hear English groups. Mom also loved the opportunity to connect and visit with Christine, a dear friend. It really felt like a foreign country with french exclusively on every sign. :)
Thursday (21st) we traveled from Montreal to Quebec City. It was so fascinating to walk through old Quebec along the St. Lawrence and see all the amazing history. In the evening we stayed at a People's Church near Quebec City.
In old Quebec City:
A lot of cool old shops around...
Friday (22nd) We traveled from Quebec City to Grand Falls, New Brunswick where we stayed in a hotel. It was so nice to see English again!
Saturday (23rd) we traveled to Geary, NB. We arrived there in the afternoon and set up our equipment for the morning service concert. We were billeted out that night. Jeremiah and I were billeted out to the Smith family and had a great time with them. All the rumors about how friendly the maritimers are is definitely true!
Sunday 24th we did a concert in the morning at the Geary Baptist Church. Wow, incredibly responsive folks! So much energy. The pastor and his wife there are really genuine, funny people. We attended their grad banquet late afternoon, singing a couple of songs, and Jesse spoke and I shared my testimony. At 7 pm we were back at the church for a full house and another very energetic crowd. A great new friend, James, from another church who was at that concert invited us back for a concert in their church later in June.
Singing in Geary (photo courtest of Ashley Smith):
Monday (25th) morning we left Geary and all our new friends to travel to the Marlowe and Rosalind Wood family on Prince Edward Island. We crossed over the Confederation Bridge from New Brunswick over to Prince Edward Island that afternoon. PEI is one of the most beautiful places in the world. So amazing. That evening we had a great time of fellowship with the Wood family and stayed at their home that night. They recently moved from B.C. and have a beautiful home and acreage! They are sure creative and industrious.
The Wood Family:
Eating with the Wood family :D :
Tuesday (26th) morning we left the Wood family and spent most of the day exploring the Island. We found a really cool secluded beach with the red rocks and cliffs. In the evening we headed to a cottage that the Robinson family had offered for our family to use. The Robinsons live about 1/4 mile from the cottage. They were really giving people. We had a turkey supper with them that night.
Wednesday we were able to explore more of the island. We visited Lucy Maud Montgomery's museum which was in her uncles home where she lived part time. I was able to sit in the same chair she did when she wrote, "Anne Of Green Gables"..Yea, pretty cool, I know. :)
Amy, Hannah and Emz by "Green Gables":
We also visited "Green Gables" and another really cool beach. Jeremiah, Joseph and Josh were even crazy enough to do some swimming. I pretty much freaked out from the cold water when it hit my ankles.
Some beach shots by the Atlantic Ocean on PEI:
Playing Frisbee:
Crazy kid (Jer) in the ice waters:
Joel filming for documentary:
We had a concert in Charlottetown that night at the Christian Reform Church. After the concert we were able to meet the Petroffsky ("Sky") family. They have a really neat music ministry and it was really refreshing to fellowship with them.
Thursday, in the morning we went to a wharf with the Robinsons and bought several (about 25) lobster directly from the fishermen. It's so much cheaper that way. It was really cool to see them bring the lobsters in.
Seeing the lobsters come in on the wharf:
Afterwards we headed out to visit some new friends, the Goehrings, that we had met at the concert the night before.
Visiting with the Goehrings:
Following that visit we went to the Sky home. They have an amazing home. They played some music for us there and did some Irish dancing. It was really cool! They really have a heart for the Lord and it we left really refreshed.
The Sky family doing us some music!
With the Sky's on top of their amazing home/bed and breakfast:
They have an awesome view of PEI:
That evening we headed over to the Robinson home again to have a huge lobster meal. It was the first time I had ever had lobster and I actually really enjoyed it. The Robinsons had a birthday cake for mom, too. :) Dad took Mom out for a special birthday dinner later that evening in Charlottetown while we continued to fellowship with the Robinsons.
Boiling lobster at the Robinsons:
They gave mom a birthday cake :) :
Friday was Mom's birthday! We had to leave first thing in the morning as we needed to reach the Ferry on time. It was hard to leave PEI. We had such an amazing time there! We took a ferry ride from PEI to Nova Scotia. That was a really cool experience for all of us!
On the ferry:
Once over to Nova Scotia we went to the Habermehl home. We did a concert in Dartmouth, NS that night at the Northbrook Bible Chapel. Jesse gave a talk on purity before the concert. It was a small church but it was full and at least half were young people. It is so great to hear how God is working in people's lives and hearing Dwight and Kristen's (our hosts) story was no exception.
Mrs. Habermehl giving mom a birthday cake that she made:
The Habermehl family:
Saturday we left the Habermahl home and traveled to the Halifax, NS where mom and dad reunited with their old Bible school friends, Larry and Karen Levy. Larry pastors a Vineyard church there. We set up our equipment that night in their church and were billeted out. Joel, Jer, Joseph and I were billeted out to Glen and Peggy Lucas' home. We stayed up with them that night and watched, "Faith Like Potatoes" for the first time.
Emily with Chelsea Nisbett, a talented musician from Halifax:
Glen and Peggy Lucas with their grand kids:
Visiting in the Levy home. The guy closest to the camera (Daniel) giving Joel some djembe tips. He also gave us a really nice roadie case!:
Sunday morning we did a concert at the Vineyard church. They were a very responsive crowd.
Concert in Halifax at the Vineyard church:
In the afternoon, Levy, Karen and their daughter Michelle took us to Peggy's Cove. It's a really awesome place.
Pictures from Peggy's Cove:
Judah with his new sailor hat!:
Amy and Hannah with their new friend, Michelle Levy:
Larry and Karen Levy:
Amy and Emz in the souvenir shop:
Monday morning we left our respective billets and headed to downtown Halifax to see the "Atlantic Maritime Museum". It was a fabulous experience. We were able to see several artifacts and historic notes about the Halifax Explosion, the Titanic and several other notable historic happenings.
In the Maritime Museum:
Hannah and Emily in a parking lot in St. John, NB.
We are staying with a family in St. Stephen, NB right now and have a concert tonight in Bayside, NB. Thanks AGAIN to all those who are praying!
In Christ,
Josiah
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