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

Because He Lives...

OK, I waited way too long since my last post and I have a ton to update. :)

God continues to show His faithfulness.

Last post was right before our stay in Winnipeg. We had an amazing time there with our Judy Ford ("Aunt Judy"). We all love her so much. She is so amazing to have our whole family stay there. We had a concert at the Braeside EMC church Sunday evening and had such a great time with the folks there. On Monday morning (April. 27th) Judy surprised mom and dad by having a couple, Steve and Jackie Masterson from their college days come for breakfast. They had a big influence on my parents in college as Steve was a professor in Counselling. He now heads up Promise Keepers in Canada. We had a really special time with them and we were really blessed to have Steve pray a blessing over our family.


Our family with Steve and Jackie Masterson and Judy Ford:


We left Winnipeg later that morning and over the next two days with a stop in Thunder Bay we traveled to Timmins, Ont. where the Morrissette family had us. We have stopped there the last three years and we have been so blessed by their hospitality. Mrs. Morrissette always makes the most amazing feasts for us all. One of the meals included three different types of mouth watering lasagna. :)

On Wednesday (April. 29th) night we had a concert in the Renaissance Public Secondary School in Timmins. It always amazes us how God brings just the right people who really seem to need to hear the Lord speak to them through the music or testimonies. We love the opportunities to pray with people or encourage them somehow. It was neat that a lady who was a caretaker at the school had bought our cd's last year. She told us that she played them almost everyday for two months! She said they still listen to them in the school while they work. She didn't even know that our concert was scheduled that night, and so she was so happy to be there while we were singing.

Thursday morning (30th), while we were still with the Morrissettes, we had the pleasure of meeting up with our friends the Hemmerlings (Double Portion) who are a family band from Saskatchewan. We had a great time visiting with them for a couple hours. Its really encouraging to see God working through their ministry.

Visiting with Morrissettes and Hemmerlings:



With the Hemmerlings (Double Portion) at the Morrissettes:



Later that day we left Timmins to go to Charlton which was a couple hours south. We stayed with the Minnett family there. We had a concert in Charlton at the public school on Friday night.
Friday morning the Minnetts took us to a fish hatchery to do a tour. It was really interesting.

At the hatchery:



Eating at the Minnetts:



Saturday (May. 2nd) we left the Minnetts and traveled to the Hounsome family.

We were with the Hounsomes for 12 days and had such a spiritually refreshing time with them. They have 14 kids with 12 still at home.Throughout our time there we studied James 1 together in our devotional time.

Our first concert with them was at the Church on the Hill in Orillia on Sunday night. It was great to have some non-Christians there that night that received the message.

Tuesday we all went to the blue jays game. It was an edge of your seat game that had the blue jays have a dramatic comeback that included two big home runs.

Lining up at the gate:


Some of us made the jumbotron again this year. :) (photo courtesy of Shayne Hounsome)




After the game all the younger kids (12 yrs. and under) were allowed to run around the bases on the field. My little buddy Judah insisted that I hold his hand while he ran around the bases. The jays staff said I was allowed to go with him if he wanted me to. I was happy to oblige :). It was a little awkward though as the moment he hit first base he let go of my hand and started running as fast as he could leaving me chasing him with all these little kids around me. :)

Trying to catch up to Judah. :D


Emz and I in front of the dugout:


Wednesday we had a concert in Barrie. It was really encouraging to see so many families at that concert. Thanks to the Kiezebrinks for all their work and preparations!

The ladies singing, "Daddies Love Your Little Girls" in Barrie:

"Come Ye Children":


Amy singing, "What Happy Is".


Friday we had a concert at the Above Rubies retreat at camp crossroads where Nancy Campbell was speaking. Mrs. Hounsome coordinated the weekend and apparently they had a great time. All the guys stayed at the Hounsome place over the weekend and did guy stuff. Like dodge ball with tennis balls, hamburgers with only ketchup and mustard, etc. :)

Sunday we picked up our girls and headed over to Huntsville to do a concert there. The Strongman family hosted. Sunday was also Mother's Day and I am so grateful for my mom. She has invested so much into all of our lives and I couldn't ask for a more genuine, loving mom.

Having dinner with the Strongmans on Mother's Day:

In the afternoon we played some intense ball hockey with them. In the evening we had a concert in the their baptist church which was packed out. It was so great to see our dear friends Jim and Marilyn McDonald there.

Back at the Hounsomes on Monday night we had a special steak supper.

Our friend Joe Jesseau (left) giving me a guitar lesson. :)


Amy and Hannah with Bonna and Nina Hounsome:


Tuesday (12th) evening we had a concert in Newmarket. Our friends that gave me my upright bass two years ago were there and it was awesome to connect with them again.

Singing "More Alive" in Newmarket:



Wednesday evening the Hounsomes invited over the McDonald family, Andrew Hiebert and Rachel Seilern. We had a really great visit with them all. Andrew is the camp director of Camp Crossroads. He shared a slideshow of his recent mission trip to Ecuador. It was really interesting.

Nekoda Hounsome cracking eggs for breakfast. When almost 30 people are living in the same home you have to do a lot of eggs. :D


The day before we left the little girls decorated "good bye" cakes.


Our last night at the Hounsomes several of us gathered under the stars and sang some worship songs together. It is so awesome to admire God's creation and worship with friends. The last song we sang was, "Because He Lives" and it really impacted me. Zack shared that it was Mark McDonald's favorite song. It's so awesome to have meaning and purpose every day because our Savior is living and reigning right now.

This morning (Friday) we said our goodbyes to the Hounsome family. We had a really blessed time of fellowship with all of them!

Joel, Emz and I with Zack, Gabe and Zoe



At the moment we are traveling to Aylmer to have a concert there tonight.

On a side note, I've been able to keep up with my graphic design business (www.siahdesign.com) on the road thus far and I'm grateful for that. I got a rogers rocket stick so I can have internet access while we are on the road. Like right now. :)

Once again, thank you all SOOO much for your prayers. God has been so good and we really sense His working and direction. Our pure desire for this tour is to be to be used by God and be His servants.

Tour Underway

If you are like me, you will quickly scan this post to see if there is anything of interest. I'll do my best to keep it concise.

As I'm writing this we are staying at our good friend Judy Ford's in Winnipeg.

God has been so good.

Shortly after my last post we participated in the Alberta Home Educators Association Conference in Red Deer, Alberta (April. 17th-19th). It was a really blessed weekend. Dad, Mom, Jesse and Heidi were some of the speakers at there.

Our family did a concert on the Friday night.

Pictures from AHEA Concert:
Photos courtesy of Rueben Kopp and Phillip Payne

Introducing Everyone:
Mom, Emz and Amy singing "Daddies Love Your Little Girls"


Amy on her Ukulele with Dad and Hannah:


Judah singing :)
On Saturday night we went out for Chinese with the Lipp family. Good times.



We came back home for Sunday night and Monday (21st) we left for Regina. We stayed at our good friends, the Durstons, for Monday and Tuesday night. We always have an awesome time fellowshipping with them. We had a concert in Strasbourg, SK on Tuesday night. For some reason it was a really hard concert where it seemed so many things went wrong. Cables popping, etc. But God was working despite our downfalls.

After the concert, a lady approached mom and said she felt the Lord wanted her to give our family her amazing Larivee guitar! We were blown away at her generosity. God is so good.

Mom with Colleen and the amazing guitar she gave us!

We left the Durstons on Wednesday morning and left for Langenburg, SK where we had a concert there that evening. We had it at the Langenburg community hall and it went really well. Afterwards we were all billeted out separate ways. Joel and myself stayed with a young man by the name of Dwight Mehrer. It was a real blessing to hang out with him. He really has a heart for the Lord and we really enjoyed visiting with him. We stayed an extra day in the Langenburg area so we had lots of time to visit. On Thursday, our family went bowling with Dwight and some other friends in the area (Yankes).

Joel and his trademark bowling trip/fall/slide. :)





Judah trying to give the ball enough momentum to make it to the pins:

Thursday evening, Darwin and Cathy MacKenzie took us out for Chinese, which was a real treat.

We left Langenburg on Friday morning and went to Carberry for a concert that evening. We stayed at our good friends place, Will and Carol Feldbusch. Some of us were billeted out to a couple from their church.

Saturday morning we left Carberry and got to Winkler in the afternoon to set up for our concert that evening in Winkler, Manitoba. We had sung there before. Its such a nice place to sing, its a beautiful concert hall that has perfect acoustics. The place was packed out and we really felt the Lord's spirit working in the concert.

Shot from our concert in the Winkler Enns Concert hall:


Well there's a quick run down of the tour thus far!

We have a concert tonight in Winnipeg. As always, your prayers are so appreciated!

In Christ,

Josiah

Leaving For Tour Tomorrow

Hey all,

We are leaving for our approximately 8 weeks tour tomorrow. We'll start by going to the AHEA conference and then coming home for Sunday night. Monday morning we'll leave for Saskatchewan.

We are mapped out to go all the way to PEI.

You can see our schedule here:

http://josties.com/schedule.html



I'll plan on updating my blog here fairly regularily. I purchased a wireless rocket stick so that I can have Internet while we are traveling so I can keep up with my business and my blogs.

Once again, we really appreciate all your prayers! It's not always easy being on the road but we know this is what God wants us to be doing now.

Jesse, Heidi and John-Michael are also coming with us. Jon and Sharla will be staying home as they have a lot of other things on the go at home.