Catching Up!

WOW! Time has flown by and I realized that we didn't post in Nov. or Dec. However, we didn't want the new year to fly by as well, so I decided to follow in my cousins footsteps and give you a recap...but only of the last two months!! One of my goals for this year is to post at least once a month and have one or more of the kids involved in blogging as well.

We spent Thanksgiving in Georgia as is our tradition. This year we hooked up or RV and hauled it up with us to give us a little more room as well as provide a "get away" for anyone needing some private time. As it turned out, the girls spent most of the time in the RV and all of the kids were seen in and out as needed. The boys had a GREAT time hunting with Pop G and Dad and the girls and I took our annual Wednesday shopping trip to Albany. We do NOT go on Black Friday...we prefer to shop before. The weather was great for the most part and the kids loved being outside. Joy and Jakeb picked up pecans and took them to a local store and "sold" them. I think Mimi Joy helped a little with the reward of their labors, but they could not have been happier. Mama cooked for an army and we ate entirely too much!!! Kevin and Christy, my sister and her husband, were able to spend time with us during the week. We love our yearly treck to Dawson!!!

Christmas is time for family and staying at home. We are always in Live Oak for Christmas and enjoy being at home for this time of year. Anda, Jason, Arvis, and AnnMarie all sang and acted in the Youth Christmas musical this year and had a great time with that. I think we might have a couple of actors in the bunch!!! AnnMarie turned 13 this year and we had a great time of celebration for her. Just after that we began getting ready for Christmas with putting up our tree and the small decorations we usually do and then the "final Christmas shopping". This year, the kids all bought gifts for each other. They had a budget and were very thoughtful of the items they chose for each other. I think we were all more excited about the gifts we GAVE rather than seeing what we might GET!! Christmas morning we eased into our time of reading scripture, singing some Praises to Jesus along with a rendition of "Happy Birthday" , and opening gifts. It was an wonderful, family filled, Christ centered celebration for us.

As we look into 2009, we look forward to celebrating birthdays, going on mission trips, graduating Anda from high school and sending her to college, challenging each other in Bible study and learning and being on adventure with God. Life is never boring around the Scott house. And you have an open invitation to come see for yourself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just call ahead and we'll have the "Ramada Inn, Room 1" ready.......and we'll turn on the hot water heater and leave a light on for ya."

We pray God will bless you this new year................Happy 2009!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Scotts

Congratulations to our Brazilian Friends

Just a quick update on our Brazilian friends, Gean and Neide. They found out that their baby is a girl!!! Her name will be Melody Leigh....after me and Leigh Wood, David and Rhonda's little girl. How exciting. I guess that means there is a trip to Brazil in the future for me if I want to hold little Melody Leigh!!!! Pray for this family. They are special to us!!

Health Fair at FBC

We had a health fair at church this week and the kids and I decided it was a GREAT time for a field trip. The Life Flight helicopter from Shands in Gainesville landed in the parking lot of our FMB and we went to see it. Look closely to see which of the Scott bunch was brave enough to try flying that thing????!!!!! Gean got in on it, too. He went all out!! What a hoot!! We had a great time and the kids enjoyed a little break from regular routine stuff. Look out Rescue World, Joy Scott is coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Friends From BRAZIL

Our friends from Brazil arrived on August 15th. Gean and Neide are from Manaus where Gean is a police officer and Neide is a teacher. For over ten years, Gean has had a dream of coming to the United States to visit and teach. This year, his dream came true after much prayer and intervention by God to work out all the details.
It took Gean and Neide several months to obtain a visa to travel to the states and they were almost turned down. Had that happened, they would have had to wait one year before applying again for a visa. But God worked a miracle for them and they arrived safely to our little apartment in the middle of the night on August 15. Soon, just days actually, after they arrived, they found out that Neide is expecting, another miracle. Back in February, Neide was scheduled for a hysterectomy, but God intervened and spared that. He in turn blessed them with a child they had been trying to have for three years.
We met Gean on the mission trip to Brazil that our church took back in 2004. Jeff and I were part of a 14 member team, the first from FBC, to go to the Amazon and live on the river. Gean was one of the interpretors for our team and has continued to go with teams from FBC, Live Oak, on every trip we have made (except one). Neide did not speak much English when they arrived, but has learned a lot since being here. She has cooked for us, cleaned for us, and blessed us with her teaching skills. Gean has taught us about Brazil, a little Portugese, and has helped us get excited about playing volleyball and a game called "burn" much like dodgeball only much more fun.
We have enjoyed visiting with Gean and Neide and have been blessed to have had them in our home. Many, many of the team members from past Brazil trips have ministered to them and visited with them while they have been in Live Oak. They got to visit with friends from Oak Hill, FL this past weekend and went to Disney World. Gean came home singing "M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E" and "I'm A Little Teapot"!!!!! They even bought the baby a Florida Gator onesie...no comment on that one!!!
Please pray for Gean and Neide as they prepare to return to Brazil on Tuesday, October 14. They will probably leave Live Oak on the 13th as their flight out is very early on Tuesday morning. It will be a bitter/sweet departure as Gean has expressed a desire to stay longer while Neide is ready to get back to her home (I believe her nesting instincts have kicked in!! and homesickness, too a little).
We continue to be on mission every day in our home and in our lives. Thanks for praying for us and visiting our blog. More later....

Looking Good!!

Well, here we are all dressed up and looking good. These were from our church directory photo shoot a couple of weeks ago. The kids were great and we celebrated with dinner out afterwards.

We are all doing great and had a blast at Cherry Lake for Labor Day. We spent time with friends and family and our visitors from Brazil. (See the next blog for that story!)

We have started back on our "Learning Schedule"...I have come to strongly dislike the word school these days as it conjures up emotions and actions in our children that are less than POSITIVE!! So to aid in the restraint of any little "monstrous beings" popping up in the Scott kids bodies, I have decided that we are no longer "doing school". Instead we are "having learning days." Anda is studying for the SAT and is pursuing her studies in order to graduate from high school in June. She has plans to go to the Baptist College of Florida and wants to major in missions. We know God has big plans for her and can't wait to see what He will do. Jason continues to play in the Youth Praise Band and is loving it. He is taller than me now and is growing into a fine young man. Arvis is also growing physically and is doing well. He continues to gain strides in his lessons and wants to learn how to play baseball. AnnMarie is still dancing and enjoying it. She continues to be a favorite helper and has tons of little girls who look up to her. She is precious!! Aaron can't wait for hunting season!!! He is chomping at the bit to go and is READY!!! He went out practicing his marksmanship the other day and did well. Jakeb has begun to memorize scripture in our AWANA program at church. He is learning how to read and his penmanship is very good. Joy is determined as ever to read and write better every day. She loves learning and has decided to try typing!!! We'll see how much she gets done!!

Enjoy the photos!!

"Double Trouble"...Not Really!!

Jakeb and Joy really aren't trouble...they just like to have fun. And no, they really aren't upside down in the dryer, we held the camera upside down for the shot...

Jakeb is all boy and loves to be in the middle of anything going on!!! He likes playing with the older boys, riding his bike, swimming, and having fun!!! Joy is all about fun, too. She loves to read right now, play with her brothers and sisters and work on the computer. They are both seven and best buddies!! They are a joy to parent!!!

That wraps up the Awesome Scott 7 for now. Stay tuned for more adventures!!!!!!!

Arvis Scott

This is my first blog and my name is Arvis. I am 14 years old and I like sports, hunting, and fishing. I like listening to music and my favorite music is Toby Mac, Yellowcard and thats all

Jason's blog

My name is Jason im fourteen, I have 6 BROTHERS AND SISTERS, yeah u know what i mean it gets a little crazy around here somtimes. Anyway lets here a little bit about me. I play bass in the youth band at our church, and I went to Roatan with the church. That was fun; we played soccer with them there a little better than we were then we told them about Jesus.

Aaron

Hey I am Aaron. I am 11 yo and I like fishing and eating.

I am blogging for the first time. I downloaded this image and this is what I think about blogging.

Family Day 08

Jeff and Mel have been married for 19 years on Tuesday, August 12. (Mel says it has been the best 19 years of her life, too!!) However, that is not the only anniversary the Scott family has in August. You see, one year ago on August the 8th, the Scott Family of 6 became the Scott Family of 9 officially. Anda, Arvis, and Jakeb joined the family as official US citizens and were united with the entire family on the 8th. We vowed to make it an annual celebration no matter where we are and no matter what we are doing!!!! We spent our first Family Night in Gainesville at Olive Garden and followed that with ice cream from the Marble Slab Creamery. The kids had a blast eating their own creations of ice cream and Mom and Dad loved seeing all the kids together. The entire day was a GREAT day and we thank God for allowing us to be together. What will happen next year? Only the Lord knows about that, but wherever we are and whatever we're doing will be and ADVENTURE for sure!!!!!!!!!!!!

About me! (AnnMarie Scott)

Hi I'm AnnMarie!

I'm almost 13 years old.

I enjoy dance. I've danced since I was 4. I also like playing video games (its just fun) , cards like uno,

phase 10, go fish, etc. and playing sports baseball, foot ball, etc.

I've had the privilege of doing many things this year. I've gone on a mission trip to Brazil with my dad, to a church camp, and to the beach. There are many stories and memories that go along with all these trips and God's been right beside me the whole time. I'm thankful!

One of the Scotts:Anda

Hi, my name is Anda. I'm one of the Scott nine! I'm a 16 year old girl who is trying to learn how to drive please pray for my mom and dad! They need it.

But what I like to do is read. Believe it or not I am reading in English not in Latvian. Reading is one of the things that I do to escape from my brothers and sisters . Sometimes it is not fun when you live in a full house of people but I have to say that most of the time it is really fun. Like my dad says "we are party size."

Another thing that I enjoy is spending time with our dog Gunner. Dad asked me to train him for hunting and I'm still working on it but he already knows how to sit, come, fetch and kennel up. We are still working on heel! Now he is my friend and when I talk he never says that I am "making a mountain out of a mole hill " or interrupts me.

I've been in America for one year. Three weeks ago I got to see my best friend from Latvia. His name is Ruslans. He was hosted by a family in Atlanta, and my family drove up to Stone Mountain and camped for a weekend. I am so thankful that God brought him to America. It was like getting a huge Christmas present in the middle of summer. He left today going back to Latvia and I will miss him but I know that I can talk to him on the phone and I pray that I will get to see him again!

Stone Mountain

Well, the Scott's have now officially joined the world of RV-ing!!! Yes, that's right!! We now have a camper and took our first (of many more to come) trips to Stone Mountain in Atlanta for a couple of days. The campground at Stone Mountain was really nice and we all had fun swimming in the pool and playing whiffle ball in the big open area. But the highlight of the trip, and the reason for going, was a reunion with 7 other children from the same orphanage in Latvia that Anda, Arvis, and Jakeb lived. Six of the kids have been adopted and now, live in the Atlanta area and one, Anda's best friend, was here on the hosting program for the summer. It was an awesome reunion for our children and it was so good to see ALL the kids play together and laugh and just have fun!! The Dads took all the kids on the train ride around Stone Mountain and the Moms and I were able to share stories and get to know each other. It was a great day.

The kids all seem to be adjusting to life in America really well and they have all grown since they have been here. We met some of the kids while we were in Latvia last summer and it was so good to see them finally "at home". Anda especially enjoyed being able to speak Latvian for about 6 hours straight!!! Arvis got to see one of his best friends and Jakeb just thought it was fun to be around familiar faces from Latvia. Although the visit was short, I think we all agree it was so worth every minute...maybe this should be a yearly thing!!?!!

For more information on the hosting program, check out the link for New Horizons here on our blog.

July 4th at Cherry Lake

We spent our 4th at Cherry Lake. We really enjoy it there and everytime we go over, we think "We really need to do this more!!!" The kids had a great time eating boiled peanunts, riding the knee boards and tube, and fishing! Mimi also made the most delicious cake!!!! Great weekend.

River Rats

Thought you might enjoy some photos from the Santa Fe river. We spent a few hours there on Saturday and had lots of fun swimming, fishing, and eating watermelon!!

Backtracking

FYI: The first photo is Aaron in 2004 just after he started his chemo treatments. The second photo was taken last year at Papa and Mimi's pond.

For those of you who aren't familiar with our family. Aaron, our son in the videos, was diagnosed with ALL leukemia in 2004. He was 6 years old at the time and went through three years of chemotherapy treatments. He is now in remission and shows no signs of cancer.

PTL!!!!!! We know that God chose to heal Aaron on this earth and believe that God has plans for Aaron that we can't even imagine or dream of right now. Aaron is truly my hero!! I prayed so many times that God would take the cancer from Aaron and give it to me, but every time God's answer was, "No, dear, you are not strong enough. This is Aaron's battle. I'm right here with him and I know what's going on." Every time I look at Aaron, I am reminded just how powerful our God is and how much He loves us.

For those of you facing challenges in this life, know that God really does know what's going on and He really is right here. We may not understand all the whys and hows and other questions on our hearts, but our family will testify everytime...There is nothing our God can not do!

Proverbs 3:5-6, John 3:16, Jeremiah 29:11-13, Proverbs 17:22

Aaron Fishing Video Clip #1

Aaron is doing very well. He is a blessing to us all and he enjoys life, and more everyday.

Thought you would enjoy a short fishing clip with his buddy Eric.

Aaron Fishing Video Clip

Aarons first strike from a Bass on top water. Pretty funny!

Ministry in Roatan

VBS and Sports were ministry tools we used to get the know the people of Roatan. The first morning we had 275 children show up for Bible School...yes 275!!! We were prepared for 75, but our team pulled things together and God helped us make sure every child participated. The numbers dropped the following days, but we still averaged around 145 children each day. We sang songs, told Bible stories, performed dramas, colored pictures and made crafts. The children loved it! The Sports team met with children on the beach for football, soccer, whiffle ball, and games. I heard great reports from this group. Many young men accepted Christ and began sharing with thier friends and family.

As we made friends during the morning, we also made appointments for the afternoon. After lunch our teams would go into the Colonia and visit those we had met during the morning activities. This allowed us to get to know the people in their homes and to share with them our good news on a more personal level. We were blessed to see God using our young people to reach others for Christ. God blessed this trip and our team! More later...

Roatan Adventures

You're going where? That was the question we were asked, but not because people were surprised that we were going, but because they had no idea where Roatan is. Located about 35 miles off the coast of mainland Honduras lies this beautiful island and the people of Roatan. Our destination was the Sandy Bay area and ultimately the Colonia. We arrived at the airport and were met by Henry and Frances, the missionaries of Living Water for Roatan. We packed in several vehicles and headed to our "home" for the week, the Mission Inn, owned and opporated by the Laird family. We got settled in the inn and were able to take in the sights and sounds around us. We unpacked all the materials we brought with us for ministry and had dinner. We were all excited about whatever the Lord had in store for each of us and I couldn't wait to see what God was going to do with the youth. Here you can see the gate at the Mission Inn and some of the kids at dinner.

Welcome to our Blog Home

We have created this blog so that our friends and family can keep up with our adventures. We want to be able to share our lives with you in a new way, and this is it!! Please comment and check out our blog often.

So, here we go...

Roatan: Island of Adventure

As I continue to process the week in Roatan, my heart swells with compassion for the people and love for the missionaries we left there. I thank you for your prayers for our family. We felt them everyday.

I am sure I will have more stories to tell you in the next weeks, but this one I want to share first.
"How Mary Met Jesus"
(Just so you know: Frances is wife to Henry and they are the missionaries we helped during the week. Tia is wife to Chuck and they own the Mission Inn where we stayed. Jeff is my wonderful husband and leader of the group.)

To her Honduran friends she is Maria, but to me she is Mary, God's special girl. Her purpose for coming to the Mission Inn on Saturday was to meet with Tia, the owner's wife, but soon found herself surrounded by a group of Americans who had come with a purpose of their own. Mary's eyes were filled with a longing; a need to have meaning in her life and soon a great curiosity about us. Her eyes caught mine and we were instantly friends. Through her broken English I found out that Mary was unhappy, but she was reluctant to tell me about it. She found comfort among our group and followed us through dinner, though not eating until we were all served, and into our team meeting afterwards. Jeff asked us to form small groups to pray. God arranged for Frances, Mary, and me to be a group. There is no other explanation; He wanted us to be there together. I asked if there were any specific needs that Frances or Mary had and Frances began to share Mary's story. Mary and her husband were having some problems in their marriage and just six months earlier Mary had lost her one month old baby, a little boy. She had found Frances and Henry and had been visiting with them for several months trying to find ways to solve her problems on her own. Frances had shared with Mary on more than one occasion that Jesus has the answers, but Mary would not accept that. Frances looked at me and said, "Mary needs Jesus." The Lord allowed me to look into Mary's heart that night and without hesitation, I said, "Well, let's take care of that right now." I told Mary the story of Jesus. I shared with her that He loves her so much that He died for her and lives again so that she can have life. I told her that God has plans for her and that she is special. Then I asked her if she wanted that life God had planned for her and without hesitation, she said yes. We prayed and Mary asked Jesus into her heart.

Mary became one of our best translators on this trip. As she and I met each morning, we shared scriptures, prayed, and marveled at what God taught us. I watched as God changed her countenance. I heard a sweet change in her voice and I saw a confidence emerge as she shared with the children in the Colonia all that she was learning herself. I take no glory or credit for anything I did. I saw God's hand in every step. You see, weeks ago I prayed and asked God to let me make a new friend in Roatan. I searched and found a song that I thought I would get to sing at some point during the week and began practicing the song. I concentrated on the chorus because that is where I thought the message was. But the opportunity to sing never came. I asked God why I didn't get to sing the song and just yesterday I realized why. The message was not in the chorus, but in the lyrics and the message was for me. The message was about a very special friend...Mary.

You'll Never Thirst by Annointed
You'll never find her story in a fairy tale

'Cause she wasn't like, the other women at the well

Her life was full of pain, hurt, rejection

Her loneliness she didn't want to show

But Jesus saw the desert in her soul
Chorus:Drink from this water

Drink from this water

And you will never, you'll never thirst again

Drink from this water

Drink from this water

You will never, you'll never thirst again
We all search for something

To fill us up inside

But it's only an illusion

You know a True Love's hard to find

But I'm here to tell you there's one place

Your thirst is quenched forever more

You will never leave disappointed

You will find what you are looking for