Monday, May 27, 2013

Memorial Day Weekend...

We had a great time this past weekend!  The campground was almost full and there were a lot of kids...

We had Gramma ,Greg, Hannah and her family all out on Sunday to hangout and visit.  Everybody had a blast!
 
Caleb already thinks he's pretty cool, especially with his scraped up nose :)  I love it...


The weather was absolutely beautiful! (for awhile)  The kids played outside the whole time, and some of the neighbors kids came over to ride bikes together...
 
At one point, Eli got hold of my camera and started taking goofy pictures of himself, so I snuck up and joined him! LOL!  

Later in the afternoon it started raining! Grrrrrr.... so everyone came inside to hangout.  The boys got in to a huge rubber band fight :)   I was to busy trying not to get hit that I did not take any pictures  :)


Even tho it's going to be a lot of work, I'm really itchin' to start our trip to Oklahoma... just a few more days  :)

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Oklahoma Here We Come!

It's official... We're going to Oklahoma City!
We are planning on leaving in about a week.  We're going to strip out my Dad's 14' job trailer, and fill it with donated supplies to give to the churches that are working on the disaster relief.
At first, we thought that we would not be able to get in to help (seeing how there have been over 700 people trying to volunteer!), but since they won't have to house us at the church, (another perk of being an RVer) we were able to sign up and we're in!

God is truly blessing our family by giving us this wonderful opportunity;  none of this would be possible without Him.  I can only speak for myself, but my life has never been the same since the first time I volunteered; our very first more-than-a-few-hours volunteer job was a weekend of building with Homes for Our Troops.  I became more aware that life is not just about me, that I had to get out of "My own little world" and look around.  When we first started traveling I thought that everything would be about 'where we were going next'; I didn't think I'd have any opportunity to do anything like volunteering several times with Samaritan's Purse.  I had no idea what God had in store for my family and I.
It's going to be hard leaving my friends when we've only been back for a few weeks, but hey! when God calls, there's no saying 'no',  no matter what the sacrifice may be.

If anyone's around the Oklahoma City area, we would love to see you!  I'm really hoping meet up again with some of the other volunteers that we met in Calhoun, Tuscaloosa, and Shuqualak!

Thursday, May 23, 2013

I Love My Friends!

I think friends are one of the greatest things to have in life.

“Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: "What! You too? I thought I was the only one.”
―C.S Lewis

I am very blessed to have some of the greatest friends in the world!  I thank God every day for them.   Being the oldest girl in our family traveling, I do not meet many others girls my age, but my friends have been there for me every step of the way, even if it's just a phone call or email.   Through thick and thin, they've been there to help and encourage me.  I have tried to imagine life without them... I hope I'm never at that point.

I'm glad that my friends don't think I'm crazy in my ideas or the way I live.  It's true that friendship is not a big thing, but a bunch of little things...

Like riding horses in the rain...(and getting thrown!)
                                                        You gotta love cowgirl boots tho!!!
"Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart"
Sorry no horse pictures, and no, I didn't get hurt :)

Or having a sleep over and watching chick flicks while eating "terrible for you" snacks... We do some pretty crazy things when we're tired and stay up to late! (not to mention we have not seen each other in months...)
"Good friends don't let you do stupid things...alone."
 
An all time favorite is playing Apples to Apples in our jammies...



Or maybe trying new recipes in the kitchen...
Some of the sweetest friends can be right in your family.  I have the sweetest (and cutest) cousins...
Hey girls! I'm so looking forward to getting ready for your Mom's party. ;) Last year was so much fun I can hardly wait for this year! Love hanging out with you guys. 
 
Somehow... Joel got half his head in this picture!  LOL!
 
Friends truly are wonderful blessings.  I think the hardest thing about our friendship for us, is saying goodbye, knowing that you're not going to see each other for a while... But, now that we travel, there are no "goodbyes" in our lives, just "see you laters". 

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Just a short one...

Just wanted to touch base with ya'll...

We said goodbye to our wonderful friends Sunday, and are at our new camping spot.

We are out on the lake, it's a great place for kayaking and swimming (when the weather warms up) and a lot of grass for the kids and their friends to play!

We are planning to stay here for a while and then move out to one of our favorite campgrounds, about 50miles East of Helena. 

I am not posting any pictures because the weather is cold and rainy, but hopefully I will get some on soon :)



Sorry so short, we've been busy the last few days, I will try to get another one on in a few days!

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Brothers And Guns...

My two older brothers just got back from a weekend in Columbus after a rifle/pistol competition shoot.   They left Friday to sign up and find a place to stay.  Saturday they ran the shooting course, and then they hung around Sunday morning for the drawing.

I must have the best looking brothers in the world!
My brother Greg sometimes ask me "have you found someone yet?" and I will say " Nope, haven't found anyone quite like you yet"   :) 
This was the first big shoot that these guys have done, the website was very misleading on the guns and the ammo amount that you were supposed to bring, but they still had a BLAST!
My brothers love the do competition shoots whenever the can.  They keep trying to get me to go and do it with them, but I think I need more practice :)
 
 

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Some Of My Favorite Things...

Sometimes on the road, every once in a while we will have "down days" were we don't do anything, or the weather is to bad.   These are a few of the things that I like to do in my spare time...

My Harp is my baby.  I'm glad harps come in so many different sizes :) even small enough for a RV!  God has given me a wonderful gift to be able to play by ear, and I love writing my own music, and playing music from my favorite movies :) 
My brother Greg walked up when I was writing this and said, "Ooh, who's that?"  I just looked him, he looks back at the screen, and then back at me and says, "oh, ya, that's you " and gives me that grin that just melts my heart every time!
 
 
I am a total bookworm; I absolutely LOVE reading!
Some of my favorite books are;
The Bible, Narnia, The Knight of Arrethtrae, Before You meet Prince Charming, and many others.
Sometimes a book can get you out of this crazy world we live in, and give you some peace.
 
This is not exactly what I do in most of my spare time, but I have a Dad and seven brothers, (six shooters and) they have taught me an important skill that I am very thankful for.
I think that everyone should know how to use a gun, properly.  Life can depend on it.  I am so thankful that my wonderful brothers are always ready and willing to teach me more gun handling skills.  Some of the best times on the road, and at home, for me, is going to the range with them :)
 
 ...and, now that I'm a blogger, I can use up some of my spare time in writing on my blog or finding ideas for future posts.   :)

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Musings From A Teenage Gypsie...

Now that we are home, I am really enjoying being parked in the same place for a while :)  I enjoy traveling a lot, but sometimes it's nice just to relax for a bit.  I am glad that we come home every summer to work and reunite with our loved ones.  Being on the road, you never really belong anywhere; you're always roaming, but coming home makes me feel like I still belong somewhere. :)    
Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if we had never started RVing!  How would life be different? (mind you I would not trade it for anything)  If we had stayed in a house we would be able to go snow skiing, have a garden, etc... but I would also have a lot more work to do LOL! (cleaning the RV is enough, I can't imagine cleaning a house anymore) :)  On the other hand, since we are RVing, I have been able to see many amazing places and meet many wonderful people I would never have otherwise!  Sometimes, when we come home, our friends will ask us if we are finally ready to have a house again, and of course we always say "are you crazy? there's so much more to see"!   I tease Mom that I will never be happy living in a house and staying in one place again! LOL!!!

Well, the blogs will be coming slower now that we are home and there is not much to write about, but I will try to post every few days. 
If there is anything you would like to know about our family and our travels, just let me know (comment)  and I will write up a post and try to answer your questions.

Monday, May 13, 2013

Brothers+ Bullets= BANG!!!

This is what the boy's have been up to lately...

http://ticknortribe.com/2013/05/our-first-pistol-competition.html

Friends... And Boy's In The Kitchen???

 
We have been back home in Montana for about three weeks now! I can hardly believe it has been that long already; it seems we only got back yesterday!
 
We're glad to be home tho, and hanging out with family and friends.
We've been staying out at our friends' house and having a great time with them!  From fondue fountains to airsoft, sleepovers to birthday parties.
 
 Yummy, Caleb LOVES chocolate dipped Cheetos!
I wish I had gotten a picture of him afterwords!  LOL!!!
 
The only thing better than chocolate, is sharing it!  It's true, everyone is smiling :)
 
 
 Yesterday, us girls were in the kitchen getting ready for company and a birthday party, when we were surprised to have the big boys come in and want to help us get ready! (without being told!) Many boys are to ashamed and afraid of what their friends or other people think of them, so therefor don't like helping in the kitchen .  Not our brothers! :) 
Real men aren't afraid of kitchen work.   ;)
 
My brothers LOVE Duck Dynasty.  Jake's T-shirt, "I always been a Ladies man" is my favorite! Of course Eli's "If You Add Camo To Anything It Instantly Becomes Cool" is pretty neat to :)
 
After our wonderful helpers were done slicing a whole jar of pickles for the burgers, we dared Jake to drink the whole jar of pickle juice ( we bribed him with a chocolate pecan pie, plus we'd throw in two buck's)  He did not need much convincing... 
 
...Going... 
 
 ...Going...
 
...GONE!!!!! 
YUCK! I can't believe you really did that Jake!  I love your face in the background Tess, you look so disgusted!   LOL!!!
We had a lot of laughs during that dinner prep; the boy's were happy to help, and we were grateful they did.  Thanks for the extra hands guys!   :) 
  
Since we aren't going to be camp hosting this year, (Thank you Jesus!), we are probably going to stay around the Helena area.  We still want to do the firework stands, and Mom wants to do Glacier NP sometime... so I guess we will wait and see what the summer holds!
 

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Home Sweet Home...

We are back in Montana now for the summer.  I have mixed emotions about being home :) I am glad that we are back and can see friends and family, yet I'm sad that we are not traveling anymore (for a few month's anyway)  I'm really hoping that some of the full-time families will be coming to Montana sometime this summer.

Some of my favorite pictures from the past few years...
Orlando Florida...
We loved hanging out with you guys in Orlando, thanks for such a great time! 2013
 
 It was SOOOO much fun visiting and clamming with you guys! I am so glad that we got to meet you all!  You are such a wonderful family. 2013
 
Great Smoky Mountains NP.
I guess Eli didn't think the view was so great! 2013
 
I had no idea that we were going to be hiking for hours that day, or I would have dressed for it LOL!! 2013
 
 
 
Listening to Regina Spektors song "The Call" didn't make looking at these pictures and writing this blog any easier. (I'm a sucker for sad music)
 
 
 
My sweet littlest brother Caleb on his first birthday! 2012
 
Christmas of 2011
Las Vegas, we were getting ready for my big brother Greg coming from boot camp for Christmas break...
...A two week break for him(and us) was not nearly long enough :)  
 
I think this is Eli!
Balmorhea state park in West Texas is the
largest spring fed pool! 2013 
 
Colorado River TT park in East Texas 2012
(she loves her brother so much!)
 
Samaritans Purse Rebuild in Tuscaloosa AL 2012. (best time ever!)
 
Swimming on Padre Island National Seashore...2013
 
Beach Carts on Padre Island!
 
Canoeing in the Everglades. 2013
 
 Looking at all these pictures made me a little sad that we are done for the summer :(  
We really had a great trip this winter, I love meeting all the new families!
I hope that we can see you all next year.
 
 
 
 
 
 Montana's really not a bad place to spend the summer tho...
(my uncle Brad :)     2012
 
Are these good lookin guys really my brothers?!?! 2012
 
 
One of my favorite things to do in MT!
Horses are one of my weaknesses :)2011
 
Elk are pretty common here. 2013
 
Well... were home for the summer, and Mom is already starting to plan our next trip south.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Samaritan's Purse!

I just realized that we had such a fast trip home, I totally forgot to post a blog on us doing SP work in Mississippi!!!
We were in eastern Tennessee at the Cumberland  Gap National Park at the time. We had already seen what we wanted to of the park, so Dad was starting to map out our route home when Mom said " Ya know, a tornado just ripped through east Mississippi yesterday and SP's on their way".  Silence... "Well? what are we waiting for!" was the answer. :)
It took us a day and a half to get there (drive time, but really all weekend!).  When we arrived in MS, we got our paper work done at the church, and took the camper out to a church camp that said we could use one for their full hook-up RV sites since we were working with SP!!!

We (Dad, Eli, Jake, Thomas and myself) had breakfast at 6:30am at the church each morning, starting on Tuesday; we got to the first work site at about 8:00am.  This site was the only one that we worked on for the first day because the destruction was so bad - it took all day to clean up.
 The mud was really bad at the first house, and the only mud boots they had were size 13!!! I wear a 9 1/2, but it worked out fine. Thankfully the first day was the only day we had to wear them.
 
 The second day we arrived at a new work site; a huge tree had blown over and had to be cut up and moved to the road.  It took about 3-4 hours to get it all cleaned up.  In this picture we are trying to get a limb that was shoved into the ground when the tree fell; it was buried at least 8 feet into the ground.  We never did get it out, try as we might, so the homeowner said to just dig down and saw it off about a foot beneath the ground and cover it up. :)
 That job took longer than it should have, we had to wait on a news crew that was coming in to do an article on Samaritan's Purse and the work everyone was doing!
We always pray with each homeowner and present a special Billy Graham Training Bible after we have finished with each job, no matter how big or small the devastation was.
Matthew 5:13-16
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
 
 The next and last site we went to that day, we had to clear another big tree that had blown over.  Yes, the work was very hard and strenuous, but then... Jake has always been a ham for the camera, LOL!!!
 
We had two guys cutting with chainsaws all the time, so the work got done very quickly!  ...and thankfully no one got hurt.
The saying "many hands make light work" has never been so true!  We had about 12 people on our team; there were several different teams that did different types of work (tarping roofs, etc...)  It really makes a difference when everyone has a servant's heart and wants to help others.  I never heard anyone complain...ever!  You were, however, always bound to hear some one crack a joke, or in some way make you smile.
Whenever you put anyone else in your life first, with a thankful and willing  heart, and think about what THEY need and not what you want or feel like you need, can really make a difference in their life, and it ends up being a huge blessing in yours.  
Philippians 2:4
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

John 3:17
But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?
Psalms 34:18
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
 
Once again I did not get any pictures of the inside of the DR (disaster relief) unit!  The boys got a big tour and all, but I still did not end up with any!
I think I was helping in the kitchen at the time :) 
On Wednesday night we got to have dinner with the church body.  All the people were so welcoming and friendly!  I was SOO glad that I got to work in the kitchen every night after work.  The cooks have to work long hours and do not get a lot of sleep, so working in the kitchen was a wonderful  blessing for me to be able to help and ease up their work a little.    
I got a pretty bad sunburn the first day of work, and then burned again the next, so my neck is really red (and sore) in this picture  :)
 
 
We ended up leaving on Friday and started to head home; it was a very sad day for all of us Ticknor volunteers!
We always have a great time whenever we work with Samaritan's Purse, it gives you the greatest feeling of fulfillment and peace, knowing that you made a difference in someone's life, and that through our work several people have come to know Christ as their savior!


Whenever I hear about a new project, look at the blogs on SP, or go to their website, I always feel an inward longing to be there again and helping someone.   Each time is an experience that I'll never forget!
1 John 3:16
By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
 
 
1 Corinthians 16:14
Let all that you do be done in love.