A Return after a Looong break!

Hello my friends!

I have decided to come back to the blog. It has been many years since I've been here, but I see the good in journaling and sharing my adventures!
So I see the last you heard from us was in 2013! I've had so much happen in these past few years, so I don't even know how to encapsulate the details.

Bill started working as a full time Evangelist in 2014. He poured into sharing the gospel, discipleship and building up the church. He started making youtube videos on his channel. It is under Willliam Gucker. He had a website called Beefy Sheep, but I decided not to keep it running since it didn't have activity on it. The videos are still available and organized on his youtube channel though.

So some big things are we found out that Bill had a brain tumor in October of 2015. At the time, I was 7 months pregnant with William. Bill & I made some decisions on treatment, & started chemo and then radiation. William was born shortly after in January of 2016. We had a quiet year after that first treatment, and then the cancer returned in the Spring of 2018. We tried another round of treatment, but it wasn't helping. Bill tried many other methods and some experimental medicines too. During this time, our church community,  friends and family rallied around us and supported like nothing I've ever seen. It was such a special time. Bill went to be with the Lord on September 28, 2018 with his closest friends and family around his bedside. His father witnessed two angels over his bed moments before. Truly amazing.

So it's been a year since Bill went to be with the Lord now. The kids and I have spent the last year grieving, and getting reoriented as a family. What does life look like without daddy here? It's been hard and good all at the same time. It's been amazing to see how the Lord has allowed me to stay home with the kids, continue to home school, and be taken care of by the Lord himself through the body of Christ and some provisions through the State.

So I'm not sure exactly what content I will be sharing on here yet, but I just am sitting down and starting. We will see what it becomes. It might be a place that I share memories of Bill. It might be our adventures as a family. It might be a place about my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. It might be about life and what it looks like to live in a big family. At any rate, it's my journey. It's something that is worth sharing. I hope you can come, learn and enjoy. Be encouraged because my hope is is the Lord. I hope you can see His goodness through my life and family!

Rachel

Braddock Bay Observatory

We went on a field trip to a bird observatory, and it was so neat!

The volunteers here tag the birds and observe where they migrate, their size, and features about the birds.

I was suprised to see how skilled they were at identifying birds and handling them so naturally!

The kids had a great time.

We had a Robin visit us! 

 

The most exciting find was a hummingbird that was caught that morning. All of the kids were gleeful about it. 

 

The Park

Here are a few snapshots at the park.

We love to come out here in the spring and catch the blooming flowers and trees. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sisters

Maggie longed for a sister for years. My heart sings as I see them together!
 

 

It's been a very long while...so here's an update!

So I have disappeared for a long while and decided it's time to start blogging again...
I'm going to do a few posts to update what's been going on around here!
First off, we found out I was pregnant, and we had our 6th child in April of 2012.
Now just being pregnant throws me off the radar, so wow..It took a while to get back to my blog!
Here's a month to month photo view of our precious baby girl :)
Newborn

1 month 

2 months-getting a few smiles here... 

3 months 

4 months 

5 months-awww, going to fall over any second!

6 months-Look! I can sit up!

7 months-I just love her little hand gestures. It's like she's going to take off and fly! 

8 months & her first Christmas! 

The Lord has been growing me in so many ways over this past year.
I hope to be sharing more regularly!
~Rachel~ 

Our Boston Trip

We recently took a trip to Boston to visit friends.
We had such a great time, that I don't even know which pictures to share, so I've just done one big collage.
Bill and I weren't sure about traveling with the kids, but it turned out to be a ton of fun.
The kids did great, and we got to do quite a few things.
I'm especially thankful to have visited my close friend, Kate and her family.

Kids

It doesn't get much better than this!

They bring SO many smiles to my face!

Favorites

Here are a few of our favorite cds for the kids!

Our older kids listen to Bible stories and have learned a great deal from them!

The younger children listen to these 2 or 3 minutes bible story clips and then a song. Very catchy tunes. They just love them.

I personally enjoy this cd since I listened to these exact songs a a child. They sing quite a bit of scripture. It's a great cd.

Valentines

With Valentine's Day coming, my kids were looking
for a chance to have cupcakes. Well, anything sweet!

So of course I'm a sucker for baking.
They decorated with these little candies and sprinkles.

Aren't they so mean? I'm saying wow...Look at Matthew's face!
I think he would take a bite right out of that cupcake if he could!
I must admit, that I did let him taste my chocolate ice cream the other day.
He loved it.
Is that bad? His first taste of real food. Chocolate ice cream...
Must be my 5th baby.
My first didn't taste a bit of sugar till his first birthday...

She has the sweetest eyes.

Having Boys

I love having boys...they really do keep me on my toes.

If he knows you are taking his picture, he will execute some sort of face...

Happy as a lark. I know you can't see it, but he just lost another tooth!

Hmmm...Those icicles are cool, but I don't know if that fence is sturdy enough!!!
Boys!

It's time...

So after quite a long break from blogging land, I feel it is time to start again. A new baby and many other adjustments have been a challenge around the house, but the Lord has been faithful to keep on teaching me His love and mercy.

I mostly been at home doing school with the kids, learning about baking bread, and lovin' on the people that God has put around me. What have you been up to????

"Kids Church"

While the ladies met together upstairs, the men organized an impromptu children's activity :-) The pictograph song was "Oh how I love Jesus" and this is Gary reading a chapter of "Christie's Old Organ". Every day is new in the Lord! Can't say that this was planned, but it sure was a good time. The children loved the singing and story. Too bad I didn't get a picture of Chris and Dan with the musical accompaniment.

Adventures

We've been adventuring all over lately!
Here's a trail we took near a park...

Cool wagon at an Italian Market...

Genesee Valley Country & Museum!

And the carnival that the kids ask
about all year. We got to go this year!