Las Vegas...Hawaii...The Olympics...and Fargo, ND

When I left Ferndale, our crocus, tulips, daffodils, camellias and the fruit trees and tulip trees were blooming. I had been to Las Vegas and Hawaii where the weather was fabulous. I took the bus to Seatac on Tuesday and boarded a plane to Fargo...and yes, I have seen the movie.
This is the famous Red River that made headlines last spring and may well make headlines this spring. The mayor was on the news explaining what they were planning for the upcoming spring and flooding. 5,000 sand bags a day is their goal. My heart goes out to the people who have stood against this river for years and continue to battle to keep their homes and land.

The snowmen are a little more elaborate! This is outside the theater. Here they carve snow like we carve sand in the pacific northwest.
Jane thought that I should be climbing Fargo's version of Mount Baker. It is really a HUGE pile of snow that has been pushed off of the parking lot. I even made a bit of a snow man...

But I didn't come for the river, the snow, the mountains of snow or the cold. I came because Jane was going to have surgery on Thursday.

I am so glad that I am here. I don't know how much help I have been because she really is very organized. It has been fun. It has been cold. I was able to connect with a friend that I hadn't seen for a very long time. We skyped with Betsy, Simon, and Mazie and swapped jokes.* Had dinner with friends that are really more of a family.

It has been a good few days and I don't leave for another couple of days.

So...from the frozen north....God bless each of you. He gives us days and experiences to enjoy, enjoy them to the fullest and thank Him for them.

*Simon: Why did the hamburger cross the road?

Jane and Nana: Why?

Simon: To ketchup with the french fries.

Mazie: Knock knock

Jane and Nana: Who's there?

Mazie: French fries

(Roll on the couch laughing. Simon is 5; Mazie is 4. When you are 4, humor is a bit different!)

Vancouver Winter Olympics

Steve's last duty day, he suggested we go to Vancouver. So on Friday, we headed for the border. There was only a 5 minute wait and we were headed for the sky train.

The parking lots were full ... what to do? A block from the sky train there was a Costco. With membership comes privileges. We parked in their lot, jumped on the sky train, and we ended up at the flame and the heart of the city.

Every street held excitement. People were everywhere and the languages in abundance.

Waits and lines were everywhere.

On this particular street, there were many examples of various art and sculptures.

Steve and I posed in front of the totem poles...and Starbucks coffee shop.

We waited in line for an hour, met a family from Washington, DC, and waited until it was our turn to have our picture with the Olympic flame in the background.

It was fun to see it up close. Made of glass not metal which was a surprise to us.

It was Steve's idea to pose in the huge cut outs. He got all set and I took the picture. He seemed to fit a little better than....
I did in this cut out...
We finished off the day, enjoyed the sights, missed a lot, waited in lines,....
all and all...it was another great day together. And how I praise God for another get away together.

The flame extinguished...it was a great suggestion for a Duty day.

You will never guess who this is....really!

Recently, Jane called and asked if I would send a picture of her when she was growing up.

Her staff and students were going to have...guess who this is. I asked her if she thought that no one would recognize her...because...you know...she has changed so much????? Yea, I don't think so!

This was around Easter and if you look closely, she has a scab under her nose. She was skating without skates with the big kids and planted her feet, fell on her face (she didn't want to skin up her face), and scabbed up her upper lip...

I affectionately call this one...Scar face Jane

Jane loved to eat...and here she was eating pickles at her Grammie's house at Christmas time...

My name for this one....Pickle Girl

Aloha...Jane had a Hawaiian party for her birthday...Kindergarten...

And here she is with Pooh...some kids are afraid of big animals...not our Janie...she would pose for a picture whenever...hmmmm....taking pictures follows her into her adulthood....

I haven't heard if she "tricked" everyone with her picture and stumped students and staff...My guess...she didn't.

I am thinking about her a lot right now. In just a couple of days I will be with her. She is having a surgical procedure and I am going to be with her since Andy will be on call and 70 miles away. I can honestly say that I am so excited I may not be able to sleep. I haven't seen her since September and for me....way too long to be away from her.

Jane's name means "God's gracious gift"...and she is...She has and continues to amuse us. If I am sad, I can count on her to cheer me. We count on her (and Betsy but this is about Jane) for witty remarks either in person, on the phone or texting us. I (We all do...but this is my blog so I can use I) love her like crazy. God has gifted our family with her personality...and we thank and praise Him for her.

It is no secret...she is and will always be my younger daughter!

Our week in Hawaii...

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We are back from a week in America's 50th state! We flew in last Thursday. By the time we landed, Steve had a sinus infection. We just found our resort and had a quick lunch and enjoyed walking and stretching our legs after our 7.5 hour trip to Hawaii from Salt Lake City.

Friday: We went to the beach, enjoyed a book, the sand, and the sun. Steve was feeling worse but of course did not want to go to the doctor!! And when he was asked, he was always fine...but he really looked awful.

That day, we were in the elevator and met a man from Lynden and we knew his kids...

Saturday: We wanted to go to Pearl Harbor but at 10:00 when we got to talk to Kona the tour scheduler...she told us we would have to be loading the shuttle by 6 am...so...we went on a whale watching tour, saw several pods of humpback whales. We didn't see any of them breaching but saw many blows and tails... We saw a mom and her baby...she would blow and then the baby would blow...it was fun watching her train her baby....

Sunday: Much to the dismay of Kona, we went to church on the beach. FIRST we went to the doctor...then to the only mall that was open to get meds for Steve...then we went to church. At church the pastor talked about ND. Well, afterwards, we figured out that Steve had known him when he was a kid, I had his mother as my special ed. secretary for years, Steve had his nieces and nephews as students....small world...

Later that night we went on a sunset lobster/beef dinner. I am not cool. The whole lobster came on my plate, which made me want to take it home as a pet...but it wasn't alive. When the waiter asked me if I needed help, I said, Yes...oooooooooo....this is where I am not sophisticated...I just about died. I had never had whole lobster...for those of you who have, you are laughing...for those of you don't know...take it from me...avoid the green and ask for the lobster tail only!!!! GROSS.

Monday: We went on a tour of the island. Saw the sea turtles, various beaches, the Dole plantation where we learned that it takes 20 months for the first pineapple to grow and the plant will then produce 2-3 other pineapples in 12-18 months...no wonder it tends to be expensive.

Tuesday: Polynesian Cultural Center which was an experience. It was a learning experience but it was fun too.

Wednesday: Pearl Harbor, the flea market, and snorkeling. The bay had some great fish but one of the things that you were supposed to do is swim with a partner. I didn't have a partner, so I spent a little time in a fairly limited spot...Dinner at the Shorebird, where you order your meat, and then when it is brought to your table RAW, you go to the grill...and grill your own.

Thursday: Up early, said Aloha to Oahu and headed for home. It only took 4.5 hours to fly to Seattle because it was a direct flight.

Today...I was reflecting on our trip. I thought about what I had learned and what we had seen. Although it was a wonderful trip, it is good to be home. It was beautiful. But God's creation in every area of this world that He has created is beautiful from the barren deserts to the lushness of the rain forests. I am just thankful that He has given it to us to enjoy.

Tried like crazy to like upload this, ya know...but no matter what I like did, like, I couldn't do it ya know? So highlight and paste this in to the address bar, if ya know, clicking on it, like doesn't work.... ya know, and like watch this poem...

Okay so you may have an idea of what this is like...it is funny and this guy has it down....enjoy...

http://vimeo.com/3829682

We are off to a week in Hawaii...oh there will be pictures!!!! Not with me in them...but there will be pictures.

The DWIPS take Las Vegas.....

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Las Vegas Trip in Review

This past weekend, our small group, the DWIPS*, headed for Las Vegas for the Miss America pageant...we had a wonderful weekend. We got there Thursday evening after we ATE...we just explored the Luxor, the MGM, and the Excalabur. *DWIPS stand for Dangerous Women in Progress...we challenge one another to be dangerous in our walk with Christ. The next morning (Friday), after breakfast we set out. We went to MGM, saw the lions, and went to preview and evaluate a TV show...Pam left us and spent time with her brother which was an added bonus for the Las Vegas trip for her. Later that afternoon, after a fabulous lunch at Wolfgang Puck, we headed for the first show...Menopause the Musical. Only 5 ladies who are all in THAT stage could have enjoyed it as much as we did...and did we identify that. It was an early show so we ATE...and headed for the Cirque du Soleil, KA. WOW...the music, the performance...it was great. Late night...and home to bed. Saturday morning we were up and ready to explore more of the strip, eat, and then get dressed and ready for the Miss America Pageant, the reason for the trip. Miss Washington attended our church and was in Barb's small group. She was beautiful and although she did not place or win, we were so proud of her. All of the talent that we saw was good...the girls really do work at this. It was fun watching the live show...and of course, fun to see Clinton Kelley from What Not to Wear. After the pageant, we headed for the Bellagio and ATE. Do you see a pattern here? Sunday morning, we were up and packed and headed for a church in Henderson, Nevada. We came in pulling our suitcases, something that I thought would be normal for the church. Judging from the looks, not so normal! We were able to meet the 2 head pastors (who have done some consulting work with our church in Bellingham). Our dear Pastor Bob had alerted the pastors in Henderson that we were coming and had WARNED them to keep an eye on us...Hmmmmm... Church service was wonderful. I think, after the filth that was evident in LV and on the strip, it felt like a cleansing an a perfect way to end our trip. Overall, we had a great time. We laughed and talked. But we were also so aware of the life that goes on in LV which saddened us. We know we live in a lost world...and LV is called Sin City...and it certainly lives up to it's name. Our hearts cried for the young women, both the "working women" and those who were obviously visiting, who did not realize that they were and are a creation in the image of God. The Henderson Church has impacted the area. Last year 5,000 came to the knowledge of God and committed their lives to Him. In June, 1,400 were baptized over the weekend services. Praise God for the church for they have a vast mission field without leaving their homes. At the airport, we were blessed by meeting Miss America. What a beautiful girl and a sweet spirit. We were all excited to come home and be reunited with our spouses. One by one the spouses showed up...well, after all of them were there, with one exception, I called Steve...his response? I am on my way....True confessions...at 4:10 Steve closed his eyes...and then...fell asleep...woke up when the plane touched the runway so it took a few minutes to get going... The trip was wonderful...but it was good to get home....and to our own beds...and the smoke free environment. Many people, I am sure, do not leave the city of Las Vegas with a heavy heart because of the sin that they know goes on in the city...but...it is truly a mission field in our country.