DiGennaro Family

Here are some pics from our trip. We had an amazing time and God showed Himself to be ever-present and all-knowing. It was a privilege to be in the midst of a great work that as been anticipated for months, actually materialize. I really can’t think of a down side to this experience.

The view from a ferry going down the Bosphorus.

Lots of little boats, bigger boats, and huge tankers going down the Bosphorus.

The spice bazaar with dried fruit and spices


We did a lot of traveling in ferries like this one to get from one side of the Bosphorus to the other. In case you don’t know, Istanbul is divided by the Bosphorus in to the European side and the Asian side. Millions of people travel back and forth everyday.

The Blue Mosque.

The Hagia Sophia.

Chad, Deborah, Sim and I traveled around together for a few days before the rest of the group arrived. This is us sitting on some castle ruins that we climbed to at the end of a tour we took up the Bosphorus River. We could see from the top of the hill we climbed where the Bosphorus meets the Black Sea.

In front of the Blue Mosque.

The cast of the play we there to support.

The wisemen who were trying to figure this whole Jesus thing out. They were hilarious.

While we were in Turkey we spent a lot of time praying for the country, they play, and the work being done there. In coming back and getting into the regular swing of things, I wonder what life would be like if we would continue to pray with such urgency and expectancy as we did in Turkey. Something for me to think about.
Blessings,
Janelle

Hey, fam! I got this from work and thought it was hilarious. I laugh every time I re-read the list, ENTIRELY too realistic…..

Christmas Carols for the Mentally Ill

* 1. Schizophrenia — Do You Hear What I Hear?
* 2. Multiple Personality Disorder — We Three Kings Disoriented Are
* 3. Dementia — I Think I’ll be Home for Christmas
* 4. Narcissistic — Hark the Herald Angels Sing About Me
* 5. Manic — Deck the Halls and Walls and House and Lawn and Streetsand Stores and Office and Town and Cars and Buses and Trucks and Treesand…..
* 6. Paranoid — Santa Claus is Coming to Town to Get Me
* 7. Borderline Personality Disorder — Thoughts of Roasting on an OpenFire
* 8. Personality Disorder — You Better Watch Out, I’m Gonna Cry, I’mGonna Pout, Maybe I’ll Tell You Why
* 9. Attention Deficit Disorder — Silent night, Holy oooh look at theFroggy - can I have a chocolate, why is France so far away?
* 10. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - - - Jingle Bells,! Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle,Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,Jingle Bells

Here’s some more pictures as well as the text from sim and my xanga site. Oh, the good times.

So, we were in Missouri over Thanksgiving weekend, and as always, fun was had by all! We had a little trouble getting there because of the first vehicle breaking down about an hour and a half from columbus. Debbie, Tirzah, Chad, and Priska had left earlier then everyone else so they could make more stops so Priska(now 14 months) would have more time to get out and run around. After they broke down, I (Janelle) ended up taking them Simeon’s car so they could get going again and I sat in the broken car til the boys could come and save the day. They came about an hour later, and decided they would have to save the day on the way back from Missouri. The first diagnosis was that the transmission went out, but then after hearing some major clunking when the wheels turned, they discovered it was something with the drive shaft. Yay for not loosing the transmission. anyway, it ended up taking no more than a half an hour to fix on the way home and the story has a very happy ending. While we were there, we did thinks like: make hobo meals and cook them in a fire, in a fire pit, by a woods, by a spring. That was the first day. we hiked in the woods, and the original DiGennaros cleaned out the spring: which was hilarious to watch. The rest of the time we spent cooking, eating, and having a grand old time together. yay for family. now it’s back to reality. Finals week is next week and the studying has begun. That also means that two weeks from yesterday we will be heading to Turkey. WWAAAAHHHOOO! Yeah, that’s pretty stinkin exciting. Here’s a couple of pics from last weekend…..

Aram and Sim trying to fix the car.

My man chopping manly firewood.

Moravia and her cuteness.

Tirzah and Priska

And again…

Dancing with Grandma, notice she is wearing nothing but a little scarf.

Amazing sunsets from the the top of the fire tower.

Sim and I have made it a tradition to watch the sunset from the top of the fire tower everytime we go to Missouri. So far we’ve done it everytime.

Dear Friends and Relations,

We had just about the best time ever in the history of the world over the Thanksgiving Holiday! Everybody got here Wednesday, but Thursday had such great weather, we postponed the Meal ’til Friday and all went to KainTuck Hollow for an outing that (not surprisingly) turned into a swim for many of us. After a fire-cooked meal, we all hiked to the tunnel cave, except that none of us found it even though we separated into three or more groups and got lost from each other for a while.

The rest of the holiday reunion was filled with food, family, and friends. Sunday, we sent the groups off with prayers and pictures, including several we’ll not see until after their visits to other countries across the wide blue Atlantic! The weekend ended rather inauspiciously with Bill driving a friend’s 4-wheeler into their pond. (You didn’t hear about that?)

Jess asked that this be posted, and besides, I couldn’t see it on my computer without putting it on here.

it’s a shame pictures don’t turn out real good on here, because this one is a dandy. Aram and Priska are laughing at each other as she “assists” him in making a new door for his shed. I came home that night and found them having quite the time together. She is becomming quite a daddy’s girl, hollers when he leaves in the morning, etc.

Just in case you want to know: Last Saturday, Isaac won - yes, won - the local homeschoolers’ Vocabulary Bee. (see www.wordpowerchallenge.com for more info) He will take a qualifying test online and possibly proceed to the State level. 3 Cheers for Isaac!

so here is our new sweetheart.. (as bill spoke the ‘”’word of the lord”'’ to phil cohen this morning….).” if you cant be with the one you love, love the one you’re with” so we are loving this one ,, who has had as many sitters as she is months old…definately an easy baby.. so its not a hard task.. i’m shifting back to frequent interuptions and ‘’quiet, the baby is sleeping” and looking for a 3 wheeled stroller so that i can take walks with out the discomfort of a back pack.
we went to that spring out by newburg that aram took us to, that tobias cleaned out the sea weed and we blocked the flow with our butts and all swam across… ..it is full of weeds..so next month or next summer we will clean it out… lottsa love, mom

Picture of spring
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Dear Friends and Relations,

I had the privilege of helping the Cotitas with their house by putting up some cultured stone by their front door. (I even got paid to do it!) Isaac and Zion helped greatly, mixing mud, finding just the right piece, and generally obeying my every whim while I concentrated on the wall. Louise had to put up with a few dull moments when I had them both with me. So if anybody needs stonework done, just let me know.

Dear family, this is the kind of day that you wish that you were here and makes me want to be here always. The blast of summer is over and a ultra mellow fall has settled over the farm with a gentle sigh. Just walked in with Zion, who is singing a song about French children dancing on a bridge. The chicken in the crock pot isn’t quite done but it smells great. The house is warm, and not even drafty!.  Have a chunk of cookie dough ( the new House Special) and a glass of milk to tide you over till the rice, chicken and cheese is done..   It is one of those crisp fall days that helps us to believe that there is a God in heaven and that the world should keep on going. Bill is putting up rock around Cotita’s front door with Isaac helping him.  There were some miss estimations and so Zion and I ran to Licking and then to Salem to rectify things. (instead of finishing the painting upstairs)  Then we saw alot of walnuts in the gravel road and had an impromptu gathering session. We got 30 ‘walmart’ bags full, stuffed them into the back of the mazda around the 25 lbs of  shredded cheese that I got at Alliant for $1.20/lb, the squeezo that Jill had borrowed, the box of picture frames that we found at the Licking thrift store for a quarter apiece and the microwave turntables,(sorry Tiz, no bags of leaves) and other assorted large round fairly flat things that I got to put  under the house plants that I brought in two nights ago because it was gonna FREEZE. It did. But the green house is cozy. The tomato plants are loaded and keeping us over-tomatoed and the basil is keeping me very happily pesto-ed. And the cold hasn’t touched them yet..The kittens that had disappeared while we were camping last weekend have mostly returned, and the geese on William’s pond fly round every so often, honking, just to make me happy. It works. aaaaahhhhh.  Tomorrow I need to can the last of the apples.. Stop by.   Mom