Loose Ends
The locked version is in the hands of our composer, Jurgen Beck. Please pray for Jurgen’s wife, Shawn, as she is now recovering from surgery for breast cancer and for creativity and wisdom for Jurgen as he composes the score.
We now have a few other items to take care of. We are refining all the text portions of the film, which is relatively easy. One of the most difficult jobs is “cleaning sound.” One of our interviews had an air conditioner running in the background, which gives a very loud hum. When cutting in and out between others’ interviews this hum is very noticeable, so we are taking on the job of removing it. This is a very difficult process and usually leaves an unnatural vocal tract. I think of it as an icy sound with lots of pops and other artifacts. Others liken it to recording in a glass bottle. We need prayer on this one! We are also working on the special features and trailers. The special features will include a full interview for each family. This will be full of the wisdom that had to be edited out of the main feature, so I’m hoping people will take the time to watch these!
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Greg
Editing!
Our first full edited version of the film is one hour forty five minutes! Yikes! We have to trim about 50 minutes to get down to our time budget. There is so much good material from our interviews that we will have to cut. Please pray for the Lord to give us wisdom as we start to cut it down.
The Border
Well, we finally crossed the border into the US. It took over an hour of waiting, interrogation and prayer. I was fine until they invited me into the back room and began the questions while snapping on rubber gloves. After they gave Shauna the same treatment, all eight of us sat forever in a small waiting room – reserved for those of us who feel like criminals (guilty ‘til proven innocent) – while they searched our vehicle and our belongings. The one suspicious substance they found was a small jar of swedish bitters, our family cure all. Once they decided we were not a hazard to homeland security, they suddenly became nice and gave us a thirty day business permit. Our prayers were answered and we were on our way. We are now a couple hours behind our itinerary and are trying to make up time. We would like to see my brother in Chicago on the way through, but are not sure we will have the time!
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Greg
The Epic Journey
Today our family embarked on the first leg of our adventure. After packing ruthlessly for over eight hours, we ran into several hiccups. We were just about ready to leave, when Dustin discovered that our trailer jack was broken and next to useless. We finally took it off and quickly left to pick up travel papers from social services before it closed at 4:30. We arrived there at 4:32, but luckily someone was still there. It is a major blessing that God kept the doors open, despite the fact that most businesses are locked down by that point. After arriving at a campground near Brookes, AB, we discovered that all the power sites were taken!! We are currently situated on a lovely no-power site, relying on battery power, enjoying the cool of the night, and taking in God’s beautiful handprints (the stars) as I sit here typing at 9:35 PM. Another bonus was that, unlike our previous road trips, we have more room in both our van and trailer than we expected, which is a nice surprise. Would you 
consider praying for us as we continue on in our adventure, that all would go according to God’s purpose, and that we could figure out a way to fix our trailer jack?
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Travis
P.S. Does anyone know which cables plug into which side of a trailer battery?
Out of Time!
Both motorhomes failed inspection and we are now out of time. We are leaving tomorrow for Homeschool Camp northwest of Edmonton, then immediately heading east the day after we return, so we need to put the idea of a motorhome behind us. Fortunately, in the spring, God blessed us with a tent trailer that sleeps eight, along with a van big enough to pull it. Our “Plan B” has now become “Plan A.” We were all very disappointed to not have the motorhome to use for school on the road, and our prayers are for contentment with what God has already provided. We also know that the cost of gas will be much less, and it be will easier to navigate urban areas. We also won’t be tempted to keep a motorhome we can’t afford, rather than selling it as we planned! So now we are in a flurry trying to adjust and pack. Can’t wait to get started!
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Greg