Last night I went to bed feeling pretty awful. This morning I woke up feeling worse. This means that Andrew got to take the kids to church on his own (I still got to get up and do hair, however). He also got to be in charge of the 3yr old to Kindergarten games for the Sunday School picnic :) and make our food to take. He chose brownies. As he was cutting up the brownies and putting them on plates, I heard our children come upstairs and start talking and it went something like this:
"Dad, did you make those brownies?"
Yes.
"REALLY??"
Yes.
"ALL BY YOURSELF???"
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Amazing Journey part 3
From Tucson, we planned to drive to Sedona, spend the night, hike around and then head to the Grand Canyon. A couple hours into our drive, the van lost power...by God's grace we were able to restart the van twice and made it to a service station where we were told the fuel pump was bad and would take all the next morning to fix. I have admit I stressed for a bit knowing we wouldn't get to do anything in Sedona and knowing that it is hard to find a hotel to accommodate our family. God completely took care of the details and I was able to settle in realizing God must have a purpose for this detour. We spent the next day swimming and relaxing before getting back in the van to drive to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
Ah, the Grand Canyon. I've been to a number of places in the States and abroad and yet I really think my favorite place is the Grand Canyon. For those of you who haven't been there - find a way to go! It is so humbling to stand at the edge of this HUGE canyon and be filled with the awe of how infitinely GINORMOUS God is. I just love it. Add the hiking and the views and you have what I think is one of the most beautiful places on earth.
Before we left for our vacation we spent 2 weeks studying some of the animals we would find here and flood geology. Flood geology is essentially a literal understanding of Noah's flood and the way it would have changed the face of the earth. The Grand Canyon is an amazing testament to God's power and how sin changed not only our relationship with God, but the very face of the earth
forever.
Time for a kid quote. Andrew and I spent some real time talking to our kids about the dangers of the Grand Canyon. People really die here every year because they take risks and do things that aren't too smart. At one of the overlooks, we saw a guy climb up onto a stone "wall" along the edge in order to get a better picture. In shock, Alyssa pointed her finger and yelled, "Look Mommy! That guy's bein really stupid!!"
We hiked part way down Bright Angel Trail and our kids did fantastic!! They were having a great time hiking down, but
different people we passed saw the size of our kids and kept telling us to head back up. We had wanted to hike to the 1 1/2 mile point, but eventually we decided that maybe we should start listening to the people and turn around. At one point during the hike back up, Alyssa looked up at me and said, "Mommy, I can't take one more step." I gave her a bunch of praise and encouragement and moments later she started singing Sunday School songs (loudly) and that kept her happy the whole rest of the hike up. We were so proud of our kids we rewarded them with the most expensive ice cream cones we have ever purchased. The black arrow is my best guess as to how far down we got.
Mother's Day we drove and hiked along the East Rim. We stopped at one of the views and read the Biblical account of the flood. Lucas commented how perfect it was that we read abo
ut the flood at the Grand Canyon. He's very quick :). You might notice two verse plaques that I took pictures of in the collages. We made it a bit of a treasure hunt to find these plaques. There are actually 3 of them at different locations, we were able to find 2. We ended our Grand Canyon time at Desert View eating a packed lunch looking at the huge expanse of the Canyon to the west and the flat surface of the Painted Desert to the east. Beautiful. I'd go back in a heart beat.
Ah, the Grand Canyon. I've been to a number of places in the States and abroad and yet I really think my favorite place is the Grand Canyon. For those of you who haven't been there - find a way to go! It is so humbling to stand at the edge of this HUGE canyon and be filled with the awe of how infitinely GINORMOUS God is. I just love it. Add the hiking and the views and you have what I think is one of the most beautiful places on earth.
Before we left for our vacation we spent 2 weeks studying some of the animals we would find here and flood geology. Flood geology is essentially a literal understanding of Noah's flood and the way it would have changed the face of the earth. The Grand Canyon is an amazing testament to God's power and how sin changed not only our relationship with God, but the very face of the earth
forever.
Time for a kid quote. Andrew and I spent some real time talking to our kids about the dangers of the Grand Canyon. People really die here every year because they take risks and do things that aren't too smart. At one of the overlooks, we saw a guy climb up onto a stone "wall" along the edge in order to get a better picture. In shock, Alyssa pointed her finger and yelled, "Look Mommy! That guy's bein really stupid!!"We hiked part way down Bright Angel Trail and our kids did fantastic!! They were having a great time hiking down, but
different people we passed saw the size of our kids and kept telling us to head back up. We had wanted to hike to the 1 1/2 mile point, but eventually we decided that maybe we should start listening to the people and turn around. At one point during the hike back up, Alyssa looked up at me and said, "Mommy, I can't take one more step." I gave her a bunch of praise and encouragement and moments later she started singing Sunday School songs (loudly) and that kept her happy the whole rest of the hike up. We were so proud of our kids we rewarded them with the most expensive ice cream cones we have ever purchased. The black arrow is my best guess as to how far down we got.Mother's Day we drove and hiked along the East Rim. We stopped at one of the views and read the Biblical account of the flood. Lucas commented how perfect it was that we read abo
ut the flood at the Grand Canyon. He's very quick :). You might notice two verse plaques that I took pictures of in the collages. We made it a bit of a treasure hunt to find these plaques. There are actually 3 of them at different locations, we were able to find 2. We ended our Grand Canyon time at Desert View eating a packed lunch looking at the huge expanse of the Canyon to the west and the flat surface of the Painted Desert to the east. Beautiful. I'd go back in a heart beat.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Back in the saddle again
After a delayed flight (we were supposed to head home on Friday, but O'Hare was having terrible storms, so our flight was delayed until Saturday, going through Atlanta, with a 3 hr layover...ugh), Andrew and I arrived in Chicago Saturday night, retrieved our 2 happy oldest (ok, so only Kayla was thrilled to see us, Timothy would have been happy to stay in Chicago), thanked Matthew and Bridget (Andrew's brother & sister-in-law) for helping to watch our kids for the week and drove as quickly as we legally could so I could see my 2 youngest before their bedtime. They were very excited to see us - and very wet - we arrived during bath time. We thanked Andrew's mom and dad for watching our kids the past week and then got back to our soaked, elated children. Lucas was a bit emotional as he told me, "Mom, you wu gone fo like 2,000 days." When I replied that it was really more like a week, he responded, "Well, it felt like fo-evu." He then put his wet hands on my cheeks and very seriously said, "Don't evu do that to me again."
The beginning of the week was a complete blur w/ lots of laundry (thank you Bridget and Mom Rassi for the laundry you did, it was such a blessing!!), T-ball, kickball and swimming lessons. By Wednesday I was starting to feel like life was starting to settle and then, as I was discussing supper plans with Andrew - a screaming Lucas came running to the back door. I looked out, saw lots of blood running down his leg, hung up on Andrew, grabbed Lucas, told Timothy to call Andrew back and tell him to come home ASAP (Alyssa was still sleeping) and drove pel-mel to the Dr. office. And let me say, Lucas was incredibly brave. Not a tear from the time I put him in the van. Two layers of many, MANY stitches later (I think even the doctor lost count - the gash was a couple inches long and down to the bone), we arrived back home with instructions to keep him as quiet as we can (hah!) for the next couple days so he doesn't open it back up again.
Yep, I'm home.
Whoopi-ty-aye-oh
Rockin' to and fro
Back in the saddle again
Whoopi-ty-aye-yay
I go my way
Back in the saddle again
The beginning of the week was a complete blur w/ lots of laundry (thank you Bridget and Mom Rassi for the laundry you did, it was such a blessing!!), T-ball, kickball and swimming lessons. By Wednesday I was starting to feel like life was starting to settle and then, as I was discussing supper plans with Andrew - a screaming Lucas came running to the back door. I looked out, saw lots of blood running down his leg, hung up on Andrew, grabbed Lucas, told Timothy to call Andrew back and tell him to come home ASAP (Alyssa was still sleeping) and drove pel-mel to the Dr. office. And let me say, Lucas was incredibly brave. Not a tear from the time I put him in the van. Two layers of many, MANY stitches later (I think even the doctor lost count - the gash was a couple inches long and down to the bone), we arrived back home with instructions to keep him as quiet as we can (hah!) for the next couple days so he doesn't open it back up again.
Yep, I'm home.
Whoopi-ty-aye-oh
Rockin' to and fro
Back in the saddle again
Whoopi-ty-aye-yay
I go my way
Back in the saddle again
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Pinch me...
I'm actually sitting in the Ft Myers library right now. Now I know that begs the question, why in the world would I be in the library when I could be on the beach or by the pool?!? But, first let me tell you how I got here!
My VERY sweet husband planned this surprise trip for us back in like February and would have kept it a complete secret if he hadn't accidentally showed me an e-mail between he and his boss outlining what weeks he would be gone right before we left for our big family vacation. oops. He still, however, managed to keep me completely in the dark about our destination and whether the trip was for the whole family or just the two of us.
He can be incredibly secretive. I tried on occasion to pry it out of him, but he wouldn't budge. Not that I was surprised he kept quiet. This is, after all, the man who kept the sex of our third child a secret from me for 4 months of my pregnancy.
Anywho...I thought we were coming here to my parents' condo just because he knows how much I enjoy it and because it is truly relaxing. We've been here many times before and know the area well, so I wouldn't feel like we had to be running around all over trying to see as much as we could in our limited time (not that I would do that :) ). Well, I was right on destination, but with a catch...this time we're here without kids!!! That's a first. We have had an awesome time relaxing, enjoying great food and he's let me walk the beach to my heart's content :).
Now, back to the original question. Why, on earth, am I in the library?? Unfortunately, there are 2 reasons for that. 1- Andrew had a little on-line work to do, so we really had to come in one day. and 2- we are FRIED. Let's just say that Andrew and I actually did our walking this morning between 6:30 & 8 so as not to be pelted by the sun's rays. We were a pretty sad sight last night, slathering on aloe vera like nobody's business.
We better heal up quick, though. Tomorrow we hit a big water park. We're, ummmm, checking it out to make sure it's ok to bring our kids to next fall. :)
My VERY sweet husband planned this surprise trip for us back in like February and would have kept it a complete secret if he hadn't accidentally showed me an e-mail between he and his boss outlining what weeks he would be gone right before we left for our big family vacation. oops. He still, however, managed to keep me completely in the dark about our destination and whether the trip was for the whole family or just the two of us.
He can be incredibly secretive. I tried on occasion to pry it out of him, but he wouldn't budge. Not that I was surprised he kept quiet. This is, after all, the man who kept the sex of our third child a secret from me for 4 months of my pregnancy.
Anywho...I thought we were coming here to my parents' condo just because he knows how much I enjoy it and because it is truly relaxing. We've been here many times before and know the area well, so I wouldn't feel like we had to be running around all over trying to see as much as we could in our limited time (not that I would do that :) ). Well, I was right on destination, but with a catch...this time we're here without kids!!! That's a first. We have had an awesome time relaxing, enjoying great food and he's let me walk the beach to my heart's content :).
Now, back to the original question. Why, on earth, am I in the library?? Unfortunately, there are 2 reasons for that. 1- Andrew had a little on-line work to do, so we really had to come in one day. and 2- we are FRIED. Let's just say that Andrew and I actually did our walking this morning between 6:30 & 8 so as not to be pelted by the sun's rays. We were a pretty sad sight last night, slathering on aloe vera like nobody's business.
We better heal up quick, though. Tomorrow we hit a big water park. We're, ummmm, checking it out to make sure it's ok to bring our kids to next fall. :)
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Amazing journey part 2
Ok, so these posts are taking me longer than the trip did. Oh well, c'est la vie!
Our next stop, after getting back into the States...after sitting in a line of cars for over an hour...with a 3 yr old that had to go to the bathroom so bad she cried for nearly half of it - not that she hadn't gone right before we left Magdalena, but anywho...our next stop was Tucson, Az.
Before we left on this trip I had pretty well planned out what each day would entail, the places we'd visit, etc. A few days before we left, Andrew mentioned to Fred Funk that we were going to be in Tucson for 2 days and told him our plans. Fred energetically told him to scrap our plans and went on to describe what we should do instead (dinner details and all). The change threw this type A a little off kilter, but I revived and we followed through on Fred's suggestions - he did live in Tucson for over 20 years after all. We had a fantastic time.
Tuesday night, after settling into our hotel, swimming and doing some much needed laundry, we headed off to Pinnacle Peak Steakhouse. It was definitely our most expensive meal of the trip, but good food and a lot of fun, too. PP is in a little "old West town" in the heart of Tucson. So, we got to take in a Western Stunt Show after supper too. The kids loved it.
Notice the ties on my boys? When you walk in the door to PP, you see a sign that says "No ties allowed." If you wear a tie, sometime during your meal, your waitress walks out, ringing a big ole cow bell and loudly announces, "We've got some law breakers here. What should we do with them?" The crowd yells out, "Hang 'em!" or some other pleasantry, and then after some coaxing, "Cut off their ties!" So, she then ceremoniously cuts off the ties of the offenders. The rafters of this place have literally thousands of ties hanging off them. Of course, Fred had told Andrew this, so they wore ties Andrew should have gotten rid of years ago. Our boys, on the other hand, were a little surprised! The looks on their faces were too cute once they realized we were ok with the ties getting cut.
Wednesday morning we headed to Desert Museum, which is much more a zoo/botanical gardens than a museum. Huge Saguaro Cacti. As we were walking along my kids more than once mused - Cactuses? Cactee? Cacti? to the confusion of the elderly people we passed who apparently don't appreciate Veggie Tales as much as our kids do. Fantastic
place!
We were there until late in the afternoon. Then we met up with Daniel and Diane Wuthrich for supper at Oreganos. Our deep dish pizza was great, but the conversation was even better. We had a lot of fun catching up with the two of them and even got in a game of Adventures in Odyssey's "Answer That" which got D&D on my kids' good side permanently. It's always fun to be with people who love Adventures in Odyssey as much as we do.
We had planned on going to church with Daniel and Diane, but before we met, Daniel told us that Tucson church was having their yearly business meeting that night and since I don't even attend Morton's business meeting - it's never sounded appealing with 4 kids in tow - we decided to opt out and head back to our hotel to swim a bit more instead.
The next day we got up bright and early again. Did I mention that it took our bodies a good week to get used to the 2 hr time difference? We were regularly getting up at 6 (yes, this night owl just wrote up at 6......am) and going to bed around 8:30. One of the many joys of staying in hotels is that everybody gets to go to bed and get up at the same time - by our third night or so Andrew was kicking me out of the room to go walk the hallways while he settled kids down. I think he decided it was easier to settle down 4 energetic kids in 1 little room than settle down 4 energetic kids and their stressed out mother because of the 1 little room.
On to Sabino Canyon. Gorgeous hiking. Beautiful natural pools formed by snow melt cascading down the mountains and hills. Per Fred's recommendation, our kids wore swim suits and had a blast.
Our next stop, after getting back into the States...after sitting in a line of cars for over an hour...with a 3 yr old that had to go to the bathroom so bad she cried for nearly half of it - not that she hadn't gone right before we left Magdalena, but anywho...our next stop was Tucson, Az.
Before we left on this trip I had pretty well planned out what each day would entail, the places we'd visit, etc. A few days before we left, Andrew mentioned to Fred Funk that we were going to be in Tucson for 2 days and told him our plans. Fred energetically told him to scrap our plans and went on to describe what we should do instead (dinner details and all). The change threw this type A a little off kilter, but I revived and we followed through on Fred's suggestions - he did live in Tucson for over 20 years after all. We had a fantastic time.
Tuesday night, after settling into our hotel, swimming and doing some much needed laundry, we headed off to Pinnacle Peak Steakhouse. It was definitely our most expensive meal of the trip, but good food and a lot of fun, too. PP is in a little "old West town" in the heart of Tucson. So, we got to take in a Western Stunt Show after supper too. The kids loved it.
Notice the ties on my boys? When you walk in the door to PP, you see a sign that says "No ties allowed." If you wear a tie, sometime during your meal, your waitress walks out, ringing a big ole cow bell and loudly announces, "We've got some law breakers here. What should we do with them?" The crowd yells out, "Hang 'em!" or some other pleasantry, and then after some coaxing, "Cut off their ties!" So, she then ceremoniously cuts off the ties of the offenders. The rafters of this place have literally thousands of ties hanging off them. Of course, Fred had told Andrew this, so they wore ties Andrew should have gotten rid of years ago. Our boys, on the other hand, were a little surprised! The looks on their faces were too cute once they realized we were ok with the ties getting cut.Wednesday morning we headed to Desert Museum, which is much more a zoo/botanical gardens than a museum. Huge Saguaro Cacti. As we were walking along my kids more than once mused - Cactuses? Cactee? Cacti? to the confusion of the elderly people we passed who apparently don't appreciate Veggie Tales as much as our kids do. Fantastic
place!
We were there until late in the afternoon. Then we met up with Daniel and Diane Wuthrich for supper at Oreganos. Our deep dish pizza was great, but the conversation was even better. We had a lot of fun catching up with the two of them and even got in a game of Adventures in Odyssey's "Answer That" which got D&D on my kids' good side permanently. It's always fun to be with people who love Adventures in Odyssey as much as we do.We had planned on going to church with Daniel and Diane, but before we met, Daniel told us that Tucson church was having their yearly business meeting that night and since I don't even attend Morton's business meeting - it's never sounded appealing with 4 kids in tow - we decided to opt out and head back to our hotel to swim a bit more instead.
The next day we got up bright and early again. Did I mention that it took our bodies a good week to get used to the 2 hr time difference? We were regularly getting up at 6 (yes, this night owl just wrote up at 6......am) and going to bed around 8:30. One of the many joys of staying in hotels is that everybody gets to go to bed and get up at the same time - by our third night or so Andrew was kicking me out of the room to go walk the hallways while he settled kids down. I think he decided it was easier to settle down 4 energetic kids in 1 little room than settle down 4 energetic kids and their stressed out mother because of the 1 little room.
On to Sabino Canyon. Gorgeous hiking. Beautiful natural pools formed by snow melt cascading down the mountains and hills. Per Fred's recommendation, our kids wore swim suits and had a blast.
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