"HORSE MOM" NO LONGER ON THE SIDELINES

Sherry has patiently transported Rachel to riding lessons all summer, brushed horses before and after lessons, fed horses, and even spent lots of time getting to know the colt and the ornery mini. Today was her turn to ride while Rachel brushed our Haflinger mare until she "sparkled". What a great way to spend the beautiful "summer" day we had here in Coshocton today (yes, I know tomorrow is November). Sherry's husband, Dave, is the facilities manager at MMS. Before Dave, Sherry and Rachel came to MMS, Team Leaders and teams had to take time away from repairing airplanes for missionary service for facilities maintenance projects (mowing, snow removal, painting, repairing facilities, etc). Dave also does a great job keeping our computers and internet connections functioning. My "Horse Tuesdays" have been so much fun this year and as an added bonus, have built "relationships" that I now treasure. Way to go, Sherry!

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

My grandson, Ethan, has "followed in my footsteps" with his love for animals and the quiet, relaxation they bring to our lives. After a morning meeting, an afternoon getting info together for MMS's 990 Tax Return, and miscellaneous office projects, I am looking forward to seeing the dogs myself. Even looking through scrapbooks of my earliest years, generally there is a dog in the photo with me. It is an amazing thing how God makes each of us unique, and in His compassion and love, provides just what we need not only to serve Him, but for times of relaxation and refreshment also. God is good!

CHEROKEE FACES HIS FEAR

This is not your normal horse "photo opportunity" (unless you are working as a photographer for a horse training magazine and demonstrating the results of a process called "sacking out"). It's been a long 3 weeks. After spending 2 weeks, and many late hours, working with 2 separate audits, implementing audit suggestions, extra meetings, re-organizing all MMS office supplies, beginning the training of a "back up" for my position, taking the time to shop (and replace) my printer, and this week catching up on my routine office work. Finally, it was "Horse Tuesday". As much as I was looking forward to the day, not much went "right". The morning was cold, my steady Haflinger demonstrated a very stubborn side that was hard for either beginner rider to overcome. My Paint gelding decided there were "scary monsters" under the tarp covering Dennis' log splitter and took me for a wild ride that only a teenage boy or girl could really enjoy. That made it necessary to spend extra time settling him down before he could be put up in the barn (dashing the hopes of rider number 2 for another lesson in trotting). Our Haflinger colt (Spirit) was the only bright spot of the day as rider number 2 calmly led him through the obstacle course. Wednesday and Thursday the sun came out, I finished my work at MMS early, and Cherokee and I went to work. By the time we were done, Cherokee was walking past tarps blowing in the wind, dragging tarps behind him, walking over tarps, and even wearing the lastest in horse tarp fashion. "Sacking out" is a process that requires a lot of patience. A variety of "spooky" objects are introduced until your horse accepts them. A lot of repetition is involved. It is an ongoing process, not a "one-time cure all". As good as Cherokee is today, tomorrow he may act like he's never seen a tarp before and the process will need to begin again. Patience, repetition, success. Perhaps God is preparing me to be an MMS Team Leader :-) While Cherokee and I were working hard, several others were working hard at MMS getting a Cessna for South Africa ready for an inspection, a Cessna for Hondorus ready to replace another plane, and an airplane for Moody Aviation. These have been long term projects. The guys have had a lot of practice patiently working when the projects have seemed overwhelming. Lots of reinforcement (both in the airplane structure and apprentice's knowledge) is going on. The result - impacting the world for God's kingdom. That makes it all worthwhile.

TIME TO TRAIN A "BACK-UP"

Last week was quite the week with 2 audits at the same time (from 2 different organizations) in addition to trying to do the daily accounting. It looks like this week will be much the same. In fact, I've had to cancel my Tuesday riding lessons (sorry girls) and will come in to the office tomorrow to keep the final audit flowing. With the financial audit still in process, I am training Dana Abernethy as a "back-up" in the accounting department for MMS and storing general office supplies and promotional items outside of my office so they are accessible when my office is locked. Dana is wonderful to work with. We've known each other for several years and I've always been impressed by her heart to serve. In the past year, I've seen her attention to detail, eagerness to be involved and faithfulness in many areas. Dana will come in on Mondays to begin to help me with the accounting "load" while she learns. Now, to finish up today's invoices, head to WalMart and then home to enjoy the rest of this beautiful day.

AN AUDIT JUST SHOULDN'T BE THIS MUCH FUN

Almost every moment has now become a photo blog opportunity. I was just telling Kyle how I am going to make him world famous through this Blogger and Facebook photo. Who says us task-oriented "accountant/auditor" types don't have a sense of humor? Today was Day 3 of our organizational safety audit. Interviews were finished. Tomorrow the SMT will meet with MSI (Mission Safety Int'l) for the review procedure. It was also Day 1 of our MMS annual financial audit. Unless you are an auditor, you would not believe the number of forms to be filled out this year. I had spent last Friday organizing the preliminary reports, Kyle and I spent a few hours this morning talking about how MMS operates as a charitable organization, and all afternoon discussing standard operating procedures in MMS' world of finance. Tomorrow morning will be more of the same. Not only does this provide accountability in the use of funds for our donors, it gives me a chance to see what new government regulations are in place or are "in the works" for the future. Now, MMS is locked up for the night, I'm finishing some tasks then heading home to my wonderful husband who just informed me he caught the mouse that was feasting on our pistachio nuts.

CHEROKEE AND MARY ENJOYING THE SUNSHINE

Things didn't look good this morning. I woke up with a major headache and queasy stomach and was beginning to think I might have been the most recent victim of the flu in Coshocton. Because of a compromised immune system following last year's surgery, any illness now requires a lot more medical care than in the past so I was feeling a little nervous about my situation. Fortunately, by late afternoon most symptoms had subsided and I was able to get out and enjoy what was left of the sunshine with Cherokee. Dennis passed us several times as he was filling the horse water trough, changing gate latches, doing some early Fall cleanup and helping with some adjustments to my riding gear. Tomorrow morning Dennis and I will be involved in a safety audit at MMS. Periodically, Mission Safety Int'l (MSI) conducts interviews with the missionaries as well as inspections of various missionary aviation facilities. It is a time of accountability as well as a time of discovering how we can serve God more effectively. We will look forward to meeting with the MSI team in the morning.

FALL FUN AT PIGEON ROOST FARM

What a wonderfully relaxing day we've had. The weather was perfect for a morning horse ride, followed by a beautiful drive and lunch at Chipotle's. Then, on to Pigeon Roost Farm to spend the day with Rachel and family. There were all types of creative swingsets, tractors, a corn maze, slides, pumpkins, crafts, etc. and lots of animals to visit with. Dennis and Leah decided to spend a little time with this lovely lady :-) After an afternoon of "playtime", a pumpkin and a few gourds were picked out for the grandkids before heading home.

DENNIS' TOOL MAKING SAVES MMS $

I'm tired. Today was spent doing laundry at home, then coming in to pay MMS bills before getting lots and lots of paperwork gathered and organized for next week's financial audit of MMS's books. Each year MMS voluntarily goes under an auditor's watchful eye in an effort to be open and accountable to our donors who so generously fund this ministry. I was a little apprehensive about the 2007 audit since I was in and out of the hospital 3 times as well as spending some time in recovery but everything has come together, the paperwork is ready and everything accounted for. Dennis has a creativity and also the skill necessary to often make tools that are not readily available (or perhaps not invented yet - several people have told him he should be patenting some of his work) to make things easier for the mechanics to work on the airplanes. In this photo, he is making a tool to insert bushings into an aircraft carburetor. MMS could buy a similar tool to the one Dennis is making, but it would cost over $300.00. The tool has now been made at no cost and Dennis has enjoyed taking a break from the normal daily routine to use his skills to save MMS money and better equip mechanics to "get the job done."

CHAD U206 GETTING READY FOR FAA

This has been an interesting day. My day at MMS began pretty much in the normal manner with collating and paying MMS bills. By 10:00am all MMS personnel met for a bi-weekly time of sharing of ideas, and a time of exploring a vision for the future. Being, by nature, a task-oriented, single focus individual I must admit it has been a bit of a challenge for me to "warm up" to times that would take me away from my structured accounting day. Now, I see it as a valuable time of exchanging information and "hearing" the heart of each of the individuals here at MMS. There is such a wonderful blend of personalities and backgrounds here - perhaps just for this very moment in time. By 11:00 we were attending a funeral (homecoming celebration) for the mother of a very dear friend of ours. It was a time of reflecting on special memories of a life lived, loving the Lord and her family. At 1:00 it was time for our monthly Senior Management Team Meeting, a time to review what is happening at MMS and what needs to happen from the management level. A little after 3:00 I was back to paying bills, talking to the auditor and once the day at MMS was finished, working on Facebook (thanks Karen for all your help), trying out some new ideas and even talking to a friend who called me for advice on buying a horse saddle. Meanwhile - in the hangar progress was being made on several aircraft. The U206 shown above has been a long-term restoration and repair project. In a few weeks the FAA will be here to inspect the work that has been done. Once the plane is finished, it will be crated up and shipped to So Africa to be used in missions service. What a day - in all things may God be glorified!