Timmy's Graduates from High School and Feels Called to the Ministry

This year was Timmy's turn to graduate from high school.

We had an informal back yard ceremony with some friends in for a party.

 

 He wanted cookies instead of cake or cupcakes (which end up getting smeared all over)! Jonathan's mom brought a couple kinds of brownies and bars, and other friends brought some, too.

The girls made three kinds of cookies--molasses, peanut butter, and chocolate,

and we put up a sign, "One smart cookie!"

(Got that idea off Pinterest.)

Grandma and pa and a few others ate with the graduate...

at a table beside which we set up slabs for benches.

I got a kick out of Carrie "practicing social distancing!"

Boys on the deck.

Girls playing with puppies in the back yard.

A few indoors while the youngsters played soccer out in the pasture.

Jonathan picked up some potted flowers at Lowes where they were $5 a basket, and really spruced up the front porch.

I'm so thankful for the pretty colors!

Lots of smart cookies left!

Presenting Timmy with a diploma (which happened to belong to his sister because his hadn't arrived in the mail yet in time for the scheduled event!)

But oh, well, for the purpose of a picture, (and now you know the very imperfect background of how sometimes things don't happen in time!) we proceeded as best we could with lots of laughs.

A hug from his mom.

More laughs as Timmy thanks his mom for teaching him and deciding what he had to do,

and what not!

And then thanked his dad "for helping," he said with a grin. His dad was involved a lot with his Life Skills classes for which he received two credits.

Last weekend, Timmy let Jonathan and me know that he feels called to "take the gospel to the cowboys." And he said that a couple weeks ago at the youth camp, while praying around the altar with others, he felt that he should go to Penn View and probably take the ministerial program.

I was so shocked I hardly knew what to say, but when Jonathan and I were alone, I went into Jonathan's arms with tears.

I couldn't be happier with this news! 

Timmy hasn't enjoyed studying very much, but I am so thankful he was willing to go where God leads. I know the Lord will help him.

He plans to spend this next year working and then go to college probably the following year. 

Below is a picture of the Penn View quartet who were at the youth camp and then also sang at our church two Sundays ago in Denver.

Mr. Wesley McDonald, the PR man, asked Crystal to join the group to answer some questions about Penn View and tell her plans for the future--which right now include student teaching this coming semester back at Penn View in the 5th and 6th grade. Jeffrey Anderson, who graduated with Crystal and is standing to her left, will also be student teaching in the music department. 

We got a kick out of Crystal being the only girl up there!

She was also the only girl playing kick ball at Youth Camp--which was a total accident!

Everyone was given the choice between Capture the Flag and Wiffleball, and Crystal decided on Wiffleball, only to arrive at the field to discover she was the only girl there!

The boys decided she should be the first to bat the ball, and she got the ball on the first try and sent it flying so well that no boy had any qualms that this girl couldn't hold her own!

I laughed and laughed when I heard the story!