TIMBER!!!!!!

When Philip saw our house and yard for the first time we knew they were perfect for us. I loved having grown trees and looked forward to using them. However, as spring and summer came we realized that the large tree in the back back yard was indeed dead. It had already shed several large limbs and we worried about the danger of allowing play nearby it. So we decided it had to come down.

Philip was excited to fell the tree himself. He bought an axe and worked hard. He was determined to chop the tree down the "right" way and really loved the workout that came from digging that axe into the trunk of the tree. He would have just enough time to fell the tree before he was to be deployed.

All done with an axe.

However, he would not have time to process the tree once it was down. I was prepared for 9 months of not using the back back yard space and seeing a tree laying on the ground out there. Fortunately, that didn't have to happen after all.

Less than a week before Philip was scheduled to deploy there was a knock on the door. The young men of our church (12-18 year old boys) and a couple adult leaders were armed with tools and ready to work (one of the leaders had just come home from a trip and from what I can tell came almost straight over). And work they did! The tree was felled and processed into nice neat piles of different sized wood pieces in no time. They packed up and headed home without expecting any compensation for all of their hard work. What would have taken Philip hours or days to do on his own, was done so quickly. I would not have to worry about the tree in the back yard while he was gone.

I love my church for so many reasons. I love that no matter where I move to, I know I will be able to make friends and have an instant support system. I love that it is organized to include people to watch over each family. I love that I will always have a group of people who are like-minded and trustworthy. I am so grateful for these amazing boys and their willingness to serve. It touches my heart that there are people in the world today that are willing to give up their time to help others. I am grateful for the sense of community and love that the members of this church provide me. Thanks boys!

I made the boys some cookies to say thank you, but they all got eaten. I guess I will have to work on that again soon, tree shape sugar cookies maybe?

If you want to learn more about the church check out this site.

Sorry about the blurry pictures. I was holding William while taking them and was subconsciously bouncing.