Road Trip Stop #1: Thanksgiving in Kansas

Road-tripping we will go, road-tripping we will go...

Our first stop was seeing family in Kansas for Thanksgiving.  I need to grab family dinner pictures from a cousin, but we did have some rural-style recreation the day after Thanksgiving.

Simply put: We had fun. :)
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This last picture? This is just a crazy Shriner car in the "Santa Comes to Town" parade. :)

First Bubble Tea

Baby J attempted to get his first taste of Bubble Tea while visiting with "Auntie" Cherry and "Uncle" Jason tonight in Seattle.

Wait, Mama!  I want to get my hands on it!

Now how does this work?

Oh, right!  Shove this round thing in my mouth just like I see Mama do!

 Baby J doesn't use a straw yet, so Mama got all the tea (and bubbles) instead.  But he tried!

Family Caroling at Christmas

All of us siblings were home for Christmas for the first time in 4 years. With siblings and spouses and a new fiancee and grandkids, the house was packed full for the weekend! Thirteen people and one bathroom! It actually worked out fairly well for the short time we were all home. We took time one late afternoon to go caroling as a family -- it takes three vehicles to fit all the car seats and adults! Grabbed this quick snapshot as we left Aunt Rita and Uncle Jerome's house. Love my family!

"Go Rest!" = Blog about Mr. Amazing

I was curled up next to my Mr. Amazing on the couch, thinking about the dishes in the kitchen that needed to be washed.  Two days worth.  I had just been rinsing and stacking, so it didn't look like there were that many, but there were.  (Granted, we had been having some easy meals, but still....)

I started to get up when Mr. A said, "You stay here and rest.  I'll go wash the dishes."

"But there are two days worth!!!" I protested.

"I heard you say that.  I'll take care of them.  You rest."

I sighed happily..."I love you too," I said. :)

So here I am, curled up with my laptop and a glass of chocolate milk and a peanut butter sandwich. And blogging about my wonderful Mr. A. :)

Wednesday night, we had a Christmas Dinner with our church small group.  Greg brought his keyboard and Bob (small group leader) pulled out his guitar and they jammed away while the rest of us sang.  I wish I would have snapped a picture -- they had such fun playing off of each other and jamming together!  Patti (Bob's wife) and I were talking today about seeing and loving that aspect of our husbands.  They come so alive when they're playing their music. :)

Mr. A has been loving on me all day today - lunch date at Palmer Park, visit with friends, comforting me after I woke up from a bad dream during my nap, talking about anything and everything, and now scrubbing my dishes!

I love you, my wonderful!

Not from today.  Photo from an April stop at Palmer Park. I can't wear those jeans any more. :)

Mr. Amazing Stole My Chocolate

"Thank you, thank you, thank you for stealing my chocolate!  You're so wonderful!"

How often do you get to say those words to your spouse and best friend?  And mean it?!?

I mean, seriously!  Greg stole the chocolate that rightfully belonged to me.  There's no other word for it.  There's no disputing the facts or changing the situation.  He stole my chocolate and I was overjoyed!  He loves me so much and it was so thoughtful of him to steal that chocolate from me!

What?  You want an explanation?  Okay....

It was a white elephant gift exchange with our church small group.  Person #1 picked their gift and discovered chocolate covered cherries, thin mint patties, and dark chocolate Hershey pieces.  Oh. my. yum!  So when my turn arrived, I promptly stole those luscious chocolates  from Person #1 and sent that person "fishing" for a new gift.

Greg's turn arrived three people later.  He promptly stole my chocolates.  And I was both surprised and delighted!  The version of white elephant gift exchange we were playing only allowed for two steals.  After that, it couldn't be stolen again.  So... since I stole it once and Greg stole it the second time, it had to stay with Greg.  No one else could grab it.  So now the boxes (and bag) of chocolates sit in my living room, ready to be consumed with a smile. :)  I'll take a picture of them tomorrow when it's light.

So thank you, Mr. Amazing, for stealing my chocolates so wonderfully!  That was perfect!

Thanksgiving!

We were thrilled to host my parents and my youngest sister for Thanksgiving in Colorado this year.  We enjoyed visiting the Peterson Air Force Base Air and Space Museum, playing Pente, having a Mother-Daughter shopping trip, eating Daddy's biscuits and gravy, eating Thanksgiving meal, praying, and fellowshipping!  We didn't take many pictures, but here's a few...

Sisters inside a Lockheed Constellation at the museum.

At a local park...

And the family (saying good-bye at the Long's home where the KS crew was house-sitting during the week)

Dear Susan, Thanks for the new shirts.  Yes, they make me look pregnant. :)

Trips, Friends, and Weddings

Another road trip!  This time from Colorado to Indiana to Michigan to Indiana to St. Louis to Colorado.  But we're still on the "Indiana" part of the trip.  We'll leave for St. Louis tomorrow.  The purpose of the trip: share about Missions IT opportunities with students at Taylor University and at Calvin College and then attend a friend's wedding.

In between busy schedules, we got our newsletters sent out with the news to "Celebrate!"

We missed pictures of our time at Taylor U. with the students. :(

We did get to see friends and supporters while we were en route to Michigan.

Friends that we played air hockey with.  My worthy opponent scored the game ending goal!

And... friends put us up at the Essenhaus Inn for our 2nd Anniversary.  It was delightful!

The quilt and handicraft shops were (genuine) old farm buildings.

And you could go up inside the silo!

And look out the top!

On the nearby streets, there was lots of traffic - both 4 wheeled and 4 legged!

Then up to Calvin College to talk to students there!

 Then back to Indiana for a wedding!
Us and the bride and groom!

And with good friends (eh?)

And finally, just for you, dear readers, the only picture that comes anywhere close to showing the tiny bit of a baby bump that (if you can imagine really well) I might have...

Tomorrow - HOME!  Well, at least heading that general direction. :)

Annual Make Uncle Bob Happy Day

It's here again and I almost missed it!  A day heralded with balloons, poetry, special phone calls, and accolades.  What day is it?  Annual Make Uncle Bob Happy Day, of course!

And what is the history behind this illustrious day?  I'm glad you asked!  Let's explore together!

It all started with a mouse.  A computer mouse, that is.  Bob M. (lovingly referred to as "Uncle Bob" by the younger GFA staff) had been using that simple mouse for years, but was deciding that a mouse with a scroll wheel might be useful.  So he emailed the office HelpDesk.

From: Bob M
Sent: Thursday, October 07, 2004 2:37 PM
To: HelpDesk
Subject: Annual make Uncle Bob happy day!

Did you know that was today? Well, OK.
...
Anyway, whenever possible, I would like a new mouse for my computer, if I can get one with a wheel instead of a little clicker. That would be great.

Thanks.
Bob

There you have it.  It was Annual Make Uncle Bob Happy Day.  Far be it from the HelpDesk or Uncle Bob's faithful department to forget such an important day (even if they didn't know it existed before then).

So that was the start of Annual Make Uncle Bob Happy Day.  The observance of this day was eventually moved to the 2nd Thursday of each October.  And each year, his appreciative staff and friends take this opportunity to tell him how grateful they are for him and, well... make him happy! :)

And yes, Uncle Bob got his mouse. :)

We love you, Uncle Bob!

A few of Uncle Bob's friends...

And in memory of Bonzi the Wonder Dog...

Blog Post Postponed

I was going to write a nice, long blog (with pictures - don't worry!) about our trip, but then I got distracted and now it's bedtime.  So here are just a few pics instead.

As we traveled from Seattle back to Colorado, we spent one night at City of Rocks National Reserve in Idaho.  The campground was COMPLETELY full.  And yes, we know this because we checked every single one of the 60 some campsites.  After looking at the map of campsites one more time, we realized that we had missed checking #59 and #60.  Stopping back by, we found out that #59 was occupied, but #60 was open!  Hurrah!  We think we found (well, God saved us) one of the best sites in the park.  About 500ft away from the parking area and other campsites, it was rimmed with rocks and quiet (except for the noisy cows in the nearby pasture).

So... a few pics of those rocks...  Lots of fun rocks to climb on... :)

 

I know! Let's get a picture!

 

Whoops!  Try 2!

Yay!  We made it!

Chronicles: I Drive a Miata and Get a Jump Start at the Grocery Store

Today's plan was simple: Stop by RFam's house north of town and do laundry while Greg works on the van. Today's actual activity - not so simple!

10:00am - Test and discover that the mifi (our internet device) is still dead. (It died last night and required 2 hrs on the phone with tech support.)

10:05 - Decide to setup appt at local Sprint store so I don't have to wait forever when I drop off the mifi for diagnosis.

10:06 - Realize I can't look up their phone number without the internet. Oops.

10:07 - Call Sprint's main line from my phone's memory. Impress the Sprint agent that I know the device ID number, store zip code, and other vital information from memory. Get agent to schedule appt for me.

10:30 - Get van loaded up with laundry and van maintenance supplies.

11:00 - Load up with Greg and head to Sprint shop.

11:15 - Drop off mifi. Explain that it's dead. Again. Please fix.

11:30 - Stop by WalMart to pick up 5 gallons of distilled water for van work. Add 1 gallon of milk for us. And 4 Totino's pizzas. For lunch.

12:05 - Arrive at RFam's house. Realize that we've had pizza for meals 3 times in the previous 2 days.

12:10 - Start laundry and visit with Mrs. RFam! Greg starts on van work.

12:20 - Convince Mrs. RFam that I can pick up groceries for her in the afternoon while she's swamped with other projects.

12:23 - Get grocery list from Mrs. RFam and keys to their white Miata convertible! ooohhh!!!! :)

12:28 - Mrs. RFam mentions on her way out the door that the Miata hasn't been driven in the last year. Hmm...

12:30 - Call Sprint store to check mifi status. Dead. They're ordering a new one for us. This will be device #4 in 60 days.

[Insert hour of laundry and Sprint phone calls.]

1:30 - Decide to get lunch with Carl's fast food coupons. Realize Greg is working on the van (duh!).

1:35 - Decide to take RFam's bike. Move moving boxes to get to bike.

1:37 - Discover bike's flat tire. oops - tires!

1:38 - Dig through stuff in van and retrieve bike pump. Air up tires.

1:45 - Ride to Carl's - wow! riding a bike is fun!

1:55 - With food, ride back. Wait - this is all uphill! Why did I ever think riding a bike was fun?!?!

[insert laundry time]

3:15 - Decide to take Miata to get groceries. Realize battery is dead.

3:20 - Greg removes van battery and carries it over to the Miata. Jump start successful!

3:25 - Realize back left tire of Miata is flat.

3:26 - Find bike pump again. Pump up car tire.

3:40 - Arrive at grocery store. Park. Turn off car. Attempt to restart it. Nada.

3:42 - Get groceries anyway.

4:15 - Put groceries in car. Try to start car again. Nada.

4:16 - Random stranger offers me their cart. I tell them I need a jump, not a cart.

4:17 - Said random stranger pulls out their jumper cables and donor vehicle maneuvers into position.

4:18 - I find the hood release and then realize: the battery is not under the hood.

4:20 - Battery found in trunk. Donor SUV repositioned. Car jumped successfully.

So... I return to the RFam's house with the groceries, pack up the laundry, pile in the van (maintenance done!) to head home. Drop off RFam babysitter. Attend apartment picnic. Go to Sprint store and get dead mifi device. Find out we'll have internet again on Tuesday. Return home and fold laundry.

So why am I blogging? 'Cause we decided to go to McDonald's internet cafe and catch up on email. And blog. :)

Sorry this is so long. When my brain is working, I'll clean it up. In the meantime, laugh! :)

Climbing Around

My internet connection is about to die.  Maybe that will encourage me toward brevity.  Or maybe not. :P

Just had to do a fun blog update.  It seems we've been climbing around a bit recently.  Independence Day weekend we decided to climb Mt. Elbert, the highest peak in Colorado.  We didn't summit, but did make it up to 13,800+ feet!

The views were beautiful!

Oh, and today?  Today we went rock climbing at Garden of the Gods!  Thanks to a deal site and a friend who gave us money "to do something you wouldn't ordinarily do," we donned climbing harnesses, shoes, and helmets and clambered up the heights.

I loved it!!!  It seems like the rocks call out to me, "Climb me!  There's a tiny little handhold right here... can you climb me?"  So it was FUN FUN FUN to get to climb up the rock face and know that you were hooked into a rope in case you slipped.

What's more fun than climbing around on rocks?  Climbing around on rocks with friends!  Mr. Amazing was there and I simply adore having fun with Mr. Amazing.  And (bonus!) got to hang out with our friend Beth!

This week's spiritual lesson? "Let patience have her perfect work in you" (James 1) and climbing mountains (and life) one step at a time.   Patient perseverance in God's strength.

Here we keep climbing!

Seattle Subjects

We had a great time here in Seattle working with Action International Ministries.  The trip has been short -- about 10 days -- but seeing the staff and hearing the stories from the field are always encouraging.  One of ACTION's missionaries was through the office on furlough during our visit.  She shared her work and expanding vision of training national pastors and churches in India to reach out to India's disabled community.  So fun to see how God uses so many parts of the body!

A few picture highlights from the trip:

 Tulips for me from Mr. Amazing!

Yummy shish kabobs with friends.

Lovely evening view from our (host home) bathroom window

Interns getting a tour of a mission organization's server room.

An unexpected opportunity for tea and scones with friends. :)