Wow! May is flying by! I can't believe it. The church is really getting close to being finished. Of course, everytime you get something finished you see 5 more things that need done. But they're definitely on the home stretch. Caleb got the bathrooms almost completely done, he's just working on the sink skirting. He got the EXIT signs up in the auditorium (which should make it useable legally now), the tile is going down in the kitchen as I type, and the doors have been painted and rehung. Trim is put down on most of the windows. The modesty panels for the platform have been built and mostly painted. The chandeliers are hung in the auditorium and the foyer. Everything is looking really nice and we can't wait to see it finished!

The CD's have arrived!

Yes, we got the word today that the CD's have arrived in Mustang at our home church.
We are going to now figure out a smooth system for getting them ordered, paid for, and shipped so everyone gets what they ordered.
Because I (Laura) am so OCD and have to have a plan and a system, I really just want to do it all myself. I'm sure some of you will completely understand!
The CD's will be a donation of $10/CD. There are 12 songs; 7 sung by Caleb and 5 sung by The Lighthouse Quartet.
If you just have to get your order(s) in, please email me at carterntcp@yahoo.com, letting me know how many you want. Then I will email you back with info on how to pay for them and I'll work on getting them shipped.
Thank you all for waiting so patiently! This has been a learning experience, for sure.

Things are progressing here in Anthony! The pews are in, lights are being put in, the carpet is being laid, trim is put down, and lot of various other things are being done. But it seems like no matter how much gets done, there's still a lot to do!
The goal right now is to have the first Sunday service in the front half of the building on May 15th, which is the church's Missions Sunday. An Open House will be planned for the middle of June sometime, which is when the entire town will be invited to view the building.
Caleb has been busy bouncing around on a lot of projects. He has gotten the partitions done in the bathrooms, and the toilets have been installed. He's been the main trim guy, in getting that put in. He's also been working on the electricity and making sure everything is connected to the right place.
The Mcculloughs have returned from Arizona and it's nice to have them back! The church has also been doing a lot of work and are really pitching in to get finished in time.
Some news on our family: we are preparing to be semi-done with school for the year when we leave here at the end of May. We will still do a few days here and there over the Summer. Noah and Kayla are both done with Science and Handwriting and they are getting to the end of their other subjects as well. Kayla's reading has been going really well! I'm so proud of her and all she has learned this year.

Caleb has been very busy since we've gotten back to Anthony!
His main project was to put up the partitions in the womens bathroom and he got those set, they look very nice.
He has also been running wiring and got the electric finished in the auditorium and the sound booth.
He was also able to get the viewing windows installed for the office and nursery.
The pews have been delivered and are in the process of being installed in the auditorium. The chandeliers have gone up in the auditorium. And carpet has been installed in the auditorium, nursery and two classrooms.
Things are really starting to come together and it's exciting to see! It's fun to walk around and remember what it was like at the different stages of construction. This is also when we normally leave a project to move onto somewhere else. So it's different to be here for the final stages.
We've started a few new things in our family; Lela has started Kindergarten, I've started piano lessons with Noah and Kayla, and Anna is semi-potty training. Lots of things going on around here! It's never boring.

Some picture updates!

Autism Awareness Month

April is Autism Awareness Month so I wanted to write a post reflecting that. Most of your probably don't know, but Noah has Asperger's Syndrome and probably ADHD. He is undiagnosed, but if you know Noah, and you read the symptoms, you can't disagree!
Autism is not a behaviorial issue, it's not a cop-out for lazy parenting, and it's not cureable. Autism is a neurological disease, and nobody really knows how someone is affected. It's probably a mixture of environment, nutrition, and genetics.
Asperger's Syndrome (AS) is on the high functioning spectrum of Autism. Noah's main issues are that he doesn't understand social boundaries (if he isn't done wrestling, he doesn't understand why someone else would be), he can't read facial or body clues, he doesn't understand sarcasm unless you explain it, and he doesn't understand cause and effect (if I hit someone with this board they'll get hurt). All he knows is that he doesn't mean to hurt that person, so he or she shouldn't get hurt. He often says it was an accident; the getting hurt was the accident, not the hitting.
Because of these he's often seen as a bully, he seemingly has no empathy or understanding of other people's pain, and he seems callous and mean. The truth is he doesn't understand other peoples' emotions and feelings. It doesn't make sense to him so he disregards them.
Please read these links and get knowldegeable about Autism and AS! Maybe someone in your family has it, maybe someone you know has it. Be aware so you can be a help and not a discouragement!
WebMD
AS or HFA WebMD
Mayo Clinic
AS Symptoms Mayo Clinic

Caleb and I decided a long time ago not to hold onto earthly possesions and to see "things" as disposable. I think lately God has been testing that decision! With our tax return we were able to get a lot of things fixed on the van we bought in November. We found out there was a huge hole in the vent hose from the engine to the air vents, and that's what was causing the horrible engine/exhaust smell when we had the vents on. We were able to get that fixed, get a tune up and all of that other car stuff you're supposed to do regularly. We also got new tires, all five! Our next step was to see about getting the front fender fixed where Caleb ran into a pole.
On Thursday we were out running errands and enjoying the unusual, very warm (90*!) weather when Caleb noticed we were leaking a lot of transmission fluid. He ran it over to the body shop and they said that we blew the seal, probably from the sudden heat, and it would cost $1800 to fix it.
We were confident the Lord would provide since He gave us the van to start with, and it was our only vehicle that fit all of us. This was definitely a need that God could handle! We borrowed the church's 15 passenger van and Caleb called a few Pastors to see if we could raise some money. On Sunday we found out that a family in our church had given their minivan to the church. They had been trying to sell it and just decided to give it to the church to use how it saw fit. So Pastor told us we could have the van, sell the van to get our Ford fixed, or not take the van at all. We prayed about it and discussed options all weekend. After talking to the Pastor extensively and considering all options, we have decided to keep the 2004 Kia Sedona and give the Ford to the church to use how it sees fit. Caleb called the Pastors back and we are going to use the money that is still sent to get tags and switch everything over, and whatever is left will go toward fixig the Ford van.
Sometimes God provides in the most bizarre ways! But He always provides!
Also, we got our final Master CD and will be sending it tomorrow to get copied, printed, and wrapped. For information about the CD, please visit http://lighthousebaptistmusic.weebly.com/