Since my last post on Dec. 27, we’ve only been home eight days.
Maybe that contributes to me forgetting that when I last wrote, my reflections ended with Engagement Matters (EM), which was held Dec. 4–5, and not after Christmas, which the blog post date would indicate.
Whatever the reasons, before I write about our most recent last three weeks—which literally took us to the four corners of our great nation—we must finish December. Strangely, that seems SO long ago already. But what fun to sift back through my December photo library and have many sweet memories surface.
My dear dear friend Helen joined us for a few days after the EM weekend to be my “Elf off the Shelf,” serving in a myriad of ways to elp “get it done.” Wrapping, mailing packages, baking, etc., she was a life-saver as well as a joy-bringer. Almost no one makes me laugh more than this very funny lady. Pure gift!
Helen had her first gingerbread-house-making lesson and was a quick study.
December days are filled with sewing, baking, making jam, wrapping gifts, delivering gifts, mailing packages, hoping for snow, and enjoying friends. We so enjoyed being home for almost three weeks, after having been gone for seven, and we caught up with many friends and a few projects during that time.
Continuing the tradition of sharing a Christmas meal together, we spent a lovely evening with our dear friends, the Amicos, just before flying to NoVA for Christmas. Making a gingerbread house for them is a more than15-year tradition as well.
And then we were off!! Christmas with the Johnsons and Lisa in Northern Virginia was kicked off with a very special afternoon on Dec. 23 at the "Sight and Sound Theater" in Lancaster, PA, to view their incredible production of “Queen Esther.” Lisa, Nathan, and Rachel joined us for this well-done, multi-dimensional theatrical experience, and we all loved it. (Derek and Julie were invited but both had to work, in case you’re wondering!)
Post-performance and all smiles.
Christmas Eve came hours after the play ended and because Julie and Derek were so well prepared, we had a very relaxing day wrapping up very few loose ends to be “ready” for Christmas. After attending Christmas Eve service at Immanuel Bible Church, we opened the traditional “one gift” of matching jammies, which I’m noticing, as the kids get older, becomes less thrilling. :)
Home from Christmas Eve service, we manage to get a group photo without a photographer.
And one more group shot, proving that the jammies fit. Whew!!
Christmas Day is full of decades’ long traditions, which include reading the Luke 2 account of the birth of Jesus, finding Baby Jesus in the manger (which has been empty up until this morning), and having a “Happy Birthday, Jesus” cake. Additionally, “Santa” pays a visit and that tradition just may have been played for the last time until the next generation begins. Rachel was PRETTY SURE it was Papa in that red suit.
Papa reads the Luke 2 account of the birth of Jesus while Rachel apparently finds something worth grinning about.
Rachel and Nathan rehearse the symbolism of the annual “Happy Birthday, Jesus” cake: the chocolate interior represents our sin, the white frosting—the purity and perfection of Jesus, the green—everlasting life, the red—the blood of Jesus, and the candle—that Jesus is the light of the world.
“Santa” made a surprise visit just after breakfast and didn’t fool Nathan, left Rachel slightly uncertain, and evoked much barking from Rex.
Christmas Day took a slight left turn when Nathan came down with the stomach flu, so plans to have my sister Laura and her husband David join us for dinner were canceled. Though very disappointing, we were all thankful he got sick BEFORE they arrived for dinner, thereby sparing them a potential case of the flu. He recovered quickly, thankfully, and after three days had passed and we began to relax that if was a one-off situation, Rachel got sick. Amazingly, the two Littles were the only ones so afflicted, but even so, all plans to meet up with others were canceled.
We did manage a day at the National Zoo after Nathan was well and before Rachel went down and we had a great day. The rest of our time was spent mostly indoors, playing games, putting together puzzles, and enjoying being together. Lisa, Paul, and I flew to Boston the night of the 30th to spend a few days before heading west.
We had a great day at the National Zoo while with the Johnsons.
The only time we saw my sister was when we made a quick porch exchange of gifts before flying home.
We brought in the New Year with a yummy pot of “Grammie Essie’s Gumbo” and homemade sour dough bread. The egg nog I made (another Grammy Essie recipe) went unconsumed the 31st because none of us were awake when the ball dropped. Yikes!! We are getting old!!
The highlight of our days in Boston was celebrating Lisa’s upcoming birthday with dinner out. The kind and generous waitress spoiled her with two amazing desserts, much to all of our delight.
Lisa is well celebrated at her early birthday dinner.
And then we were off on our “around the country in 22 days” tour. First stop: Oakland, CA.
We happily spent almost a week with Gabe and Kari and kids, moving them into their “new, old house.” After 21 months of praying and searching, of making offers not accepted, and of longing for a home in which to settle, they bought a house 1.5 blocks from where they’ve resided since moving to Oakland. There were no tears shed when they left their very overpriced, too-small apartment behind. They are deeply grateful for God’s provision of this very overpriced but very adequate home which is situated one block from the elementary school their kids attend and with which they’ve partnered since arriving. We loved helping them get settled and were so impressed by the team of New City Church Oakland friends who joined the moving party and did the heavy lifting. Within a few days, they were relatively well settled in their new home.
First meal in their new home!!
Friends from New City Church showed up in force to help with the move into their home.
Lisa’s birthday celebration in the Garcias’ new home.
We were blessed to attend services at New City Church while out for the move.
From Oakland, we flew to Portland, OR, and spent three delightful days hanging out with very dear people. First stop, Lincoln City, to visit my sister Melissa in her “new hood.” She left her lifelong San Diego residence and relocated here a year and a half ago to be near her son and his family. We were so happy to see her, her new life, and some of her grandchildren. Sweet visit.
Mt Hood welcomed us to the Pacific NW.
We had a "too short but better than nothin’” visit with sister Melissa (far left), her daughter-in-law Claire (far right), and five of their eight children in between. Melissa’s son Corey was doing missions work in KY (rebuilding from the tornado damage) with their older kids.
Our next stop was Portland, where we spent a day and night reconnecting with Earl and Sandy Wilson, with whom we co-authored Restoring the Fallen. It had been too many years since we had been together. Larry Paulson (also a co-author) joined us for lunch during which time we filled in the many blanks of our lives. The Wilsons’ story of redemption and restoration continues to be so hope-giving, evidenced by the authenticity of their love for one another and their more than 60 years of marriage. “Beauty from ashes.”
A great reunion was had when this group of co-authors reconnected. Larry Paulson is in the middle, with Earl and Sandy Wilson on the right.
The journey continued to Gig Harbor, where we spent an afternoon with Ray and Sara Flowers and their sons, as well as with Sara’s mom, Wendy Turney (the water-colorist who illustrated The Family Table Cookbook.) The Flowers moved from their lifelong home in CA to WA just about two years ago and we loved seeing their new life and catching up with them. They’ve really leaned in to this not-easy transition, leaving friends and all that is familiar during the pandemic, and their hard work of adjustment is bearing fruit.
So fun to be with the Flowers/Turney crew in their new home/hood in WA.
Our final stop before heading to eastern Washington was at the Lookers’ home in Tacoma. Dane and Amy were in the first Patriots’ couples study, started by Grant and Emily Williams in 1999, and though Dane left for the Rams after that season, we became lifelong friends. We had the best time with their family of six around the dinner table, not first because of the food (which was yummy) but because of the interaction. All four children (ages 10-17) stayed around the table for a couple of hours, actively engaged in conversations about very important matters. We left so very encouraged by this thriving-in-Christ family.
We spent a delightful evening with the Lookers in Tacoma.
Friday, Jan. 14, we repacked and headed east to Spokane, making a lunch stop in Moses Lake to catch up with our dear friends Mark and Sharon Blazer and Marilyn Shuck. These guys have been a huge part of the annual marriage conference we’ve done for Moses Lake Alliance Church for the past 15 or so years, and our hearts are deeply connected with theirs. We had a wonderful time with them.
Lunch with Mark and Sharon Blazer and Marilyn Shuck (her husband, Justin, was at work) was very sweet.
On to Newport, WA (just north of Spokane), for the Moses Lake Alliance Church annual marriage retreat. It is such an honor to be invited back year after year to partner with these dear people. Again this year, we felt so met by God throughout the weekend. It is so good and healing for the soul to gather together, worshiping, learning, fellowshipping. Those who organized it invested much in planning, and it showed. It was a great weekend in every way.
Most of those attending the conference got the memo suggesting flannel shirts for Saturday night dinner and group photo.
Most of the planning/executing team for the Moses Lake Alliance Church marriage conference. Great people with great hearts.
Such fun to have Duke and Amy Paulson (friends for 30 years) join the MLAC crew. Though they live in Tacoma, they gained permission to come to the conference years ago and have made it their tradition.
We clicked our heels and suddenly found ourselves laying over for three days in Dallas, TX, on our way to Sarasota, FL. Why not?? The days weren’t long enough to see everyone we wanted to see, but the visits we had were energizing.
Our “home base” was with newly-transplanted-from-CA Bill and Christi Bachman. They were the consummate hosts, making us feel very “at home” as they provided for all our needs (like meals, a bed, late night chats, and walks) and more, read: Bill helped me set up my new laptop which I bought in JULY but hadn’t the courage to open until we were hanging with our reliable tech support. What a gift to me! Bill invested a significant amount of time getting the job done, for which I’m very grateful. It was SO good to be with them and their son Nathan, whose basketball game we happily attended.
The Bachmans hosted mutual friends, Bill and Kristen Smith (who also recently relocated to TX), for dinner one evening. (There is a migratory theme emerging.) Both families forged a deep friendship throughout many summers together at family camp, and we celebrated reconnecting and catching up on life. We are so very blessed to have so many quality people in our life.
Bill and Christi, Bill and Kristen, and we had a rich and deep night connecting over many important issues.
Watching Nathan play basketball was on our bucket list. Check!
We had a sweet lunch date with Tim and Kathryn (Hopper) Alford in the nearby town of Melissa, TX, and were thrilled to be in their new home and meet their new baby! Kathryn grew up at family camp and eventually served on staff for several summers. We did pre-marital counseling with them and celebrated their nuptials almost three years ago. It was so encouraging to see their thriving marriage and life.
Tim and Kathryn with baby Libby hosted us for lunch in their new home.
Continuing on our lunch tour, it was a joy to share a meal with Rex and Danielle Burkhead in their Dallas home. They were in the Patriots Couples’ study for four years and Danielle was in the women’s study as well. They wove their way deep in our hearts over those years so it was a personal loss to us when they were signed with the Texans last year. We were so encouraged by their continuing pursuit of Jesus in the midst of their busy football and parenting life.
Rex and Danielle and the boys welcomed us in to their home for lunch.
We mixed it up and had dinner with Adam and Rebecca (Haseltine) White one evening. Rebecca grew up at family camp and honored Paul by asking him to marry them in 2018. They are also thriving in their marriage and in their new life in TX (guess what: they moved there from CA just last year!). Everything about the evening together was right and good.
Adam and Rebecca are loving their new life in Texas.
We clicked our heels again and were transported to Sarasota, FL, where we spent the weekend teaching at the Sarasota Community Church. Arranged by our longtime friend Liz Lane, who serves as family ministries director at the church, we loved both teaching at the church and reconnecting with Liz (and her husband Steve). Our relationship goes back to our days at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (GCTS), when Liz was enrolled in our Christian Marriage and Family class at GCTS—and we’ve been lifelong friends since.
We were welcomed by this sunset our first day in Sarasota. “Lord of all creation…the heavens are your tabernacle…Glory to the Lord on high!”
Liz organized a Saturday morning relationships seminar at the church, which was very well attended and seemed to be greatly appreciated. Dennis Bontrager, interim pastor of the church, confided in us that he was hoping for 30 attendees and was blown away by the 85 who came. Consistently we are seeing large in-person turnouts for events, confirming our ever deepening desire for flesh and blood community/fellowship following almost two years of much isolation. Sarasota Community Church has an older congregation, so it was even more impressive that so many came out.
We also had the privilege of teaching their Sunday School class before church, which about 180 attended, and their worship service, where over 400 gathered. It was life-giving to be with this vital congregation.
Sweet Liz . . . such a joy to be with her.
We had instant rapport with interim pastor, Dennis Bontrager, and are so thankful for the leadership and direction he’s giving to the church.
Saturday morning’s seminar was well attended.
The Sunday morning worship service was alive and energetic.
While in Sarasota, we met up with our friends, Chad and Cathy Robrock. Our first “chance” meeting happened in the Caribbean eight years ago, where we discovered a mutual compatibility as we swam with sting rays. One thing led to another and we became fast friends in four short days. The internet has kept us connected since, but we had another “chance” meeting in Kona in November, where we picked up where we left off. This time we hung out with monk seals. We more than happily drove to meet up with them for an evening since we were only one hour apart while in FL and we had such a fun evening together. We know there is nothing “chance” about our friendship and are already looking forward to the next time our paths cross.
Chad and Cathy Robrock have become very dear friends.
Last stop on our around the country tour: Santa Rosa Beach, FL. At the invitation of one of our retired Patriots couples, for whom we’ve become spiritual parents/grandparents, we spent the last two days of our trip with their sweet family. We had a blast hanging out with Sebastian and Lindsay and their three children. Papa Paul made cookies with the kids and salsa for the grown-ups. We did crafts and played chase. And we got away for a couple of meals with just the adults to talk about life and lessons. Though the weather was rainy and cold, their home was a warm shelter and we were so grateful for their healthy, growing family and marriage. Pure delight.
Papa Paul passed on his chocolate chip cookie-making secrets to these three.
It was just so good to spend time together.
And with that, we flew home to the NE corner of the country where we found our home. We sneaked in just before the Blizzard of 2022 arrived, making this snow-loving twosome very, very happy.
Thus endeth our “around the country in 22 days" adventure. We are so very thankful to be off and running in 2022, and that everywhere we’ve been, we’re experiencing hope in spite of the crazy state of affairs that perpetuates an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty. We are so thankful to proclaim that our hope is truly in Him and in Him alone.