Jul. 22, 2009 New York City, the Whirlwind Tour
After our visit with Art and Betsy in PA, we battled NY traffic and finally made it to Grandma’s house. When we arrived on my parents’ block, my mom ran down the street to greet her grandchildren while we were still trying to find a place to park. It was so touching.   Other relatives were there to meet us, including my birthday aunt, Titi Martita (I was born on her birthday when she was a young teen) with her husband Jim. They had driven down from northern NJ to see us since it had been years since we last connected. 
My sister and her whole family were there, including my niece’s two little ones Kaylie (age 2 yrs) and Layla (age 2 months). And of course my brother and my parents were there as well. What a happy family moment. Here's Kaylie meeting her two aunts for the first time!
The next day, Uncle Joe (my baby brother) took my parents and my little crew sailing on his sailboat where we were treated to a view of NY's scenery from the water, NY Bridges, light houses, Execution Rocks and more. We were even able to point out old stomping grounds to kids, like Kings Pt Academy, the place where Greg and I met working on a harbor simulator. We also sailed by where Greg went to college: Ft Schylur, SUNY Maritime College. My brother then sailed us over to City Island where we anchored and went into town for dinner. My kids experienced a seafood bonanza of lobster, scallops, Alaskan crab, calamari, mussels, clams and more, all courtesy of Uncle Joe. They tried everything - not a squeamish one among them. Then the nine of us lumbered our way back to the boat and sailed home.
The high light of the trip was going into NYC the next day with my parents, my sister and my brother who joined us later. Since we had only one day, we opted to do lower Manhattan, saving Midtown for another visit. We rode the subway in (a first for my kids) and went to the World Trade Center site and visited St. Paul's Chapel, which was home to an extraordinary eight-month volunteer relief effort after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. We saw my old place of employment on 130 Liberty Street, which is presently being demolished, due to unrepairable 9/11 damage. We also visited another very old church, Trinity Church (founded in 1697), a calm respite right across from the NY Stock Exchange. It was very moving and very sad as I remembered how these places were 20 years ago when I worked in the area. People are still remembering the tragedy, and may we, as a nation never forget. 
Uncle Joe met us and we all rode the Staten Island Ferry so the kids could see the Statue of Liberty from the water since tickets to the statue were all sold out. They couldn’t believe people actually had to commute by ferry to work each day. We then went to South Street Seaport. Joe took the kids on the 'Shark', a high speed boat ride through NY Harbor where they learned that in New York, "BMW", stands for three of the NYC Bridges….the Brooklynn, Manhattan and Williamsburg bridges.Kimberly even had her picture drawn by a street artist. We also packed in tours of the seaport museum and an old lightship, the Ambrose, built in 1908, that Greg's grandfather used when piloting ships in and out of NY harbor.
 Then came a walk over to China town with good food and great buys. We shopped and ate and then made the long trip home. We were exhausted but happy. We stayed up and visited with all the family back at my parents’ home one last time and then we arose at 5:30 am the next day to make the long drive back to Charleston.
But the trip wasn’t over yet. We stopped for 2 hours in Washington D.C. and visited the Lincoln Memorial, which the younger kids learned about this year, the WWII Memorial, and the Washington Monument. Of course we had our National Passports stamped appropriately. All in all, it was a whirlwind trip filled with many unforgettable moments. We were so blessed by so many people. I am so grateful. God is so good to us.
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We were speared by road debris while driving on the turnpike from Philly, PA towards Staten Island, NY. Amazingly, it went into our bumper and didn't hit the windshield or get caught in the undercarriage of our vehicle. (God was definitely looking out for us!) Pretty funny stares from people as we drove into the nearest rest stop to see what had happened.Thank you Lord! |
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Jun. 20, 2009 ReConnecting with family and friends
Last week we drove 12 hours north to visit Greg’s family in PA, where his sister Lori spoiled us and gave us the whole top floor ( all three bedrooms) for us to relax and settle in. We visited his mom at her retirement community and had dinner with her in the main dining room. So many of her friends came by to comment on her grandkids. I think secretly she was thrilled. See her smiling in this picture.  She is only 88 yrs young. There was a married couple there in their hundreds!
The Eddy family: Lori and Dick, their son Erik, and the newlyweds, Nick and Courtney, (Lori’s daughter Jenny was in Boston) spent time with us, feeding us good meals including a backyard barbecue, wiffle ball and ping pong, ten mile bike rides, orienteering (with ticks and all), and of course a little bit of shopping for the girls. We enjoyed many pictures from the wedding, courtesy of the proud mother of the groom. Plus we were able to spend more time with Grandma. It was a very relaxing fun time.
Just the bit of rest we needed before we headed east to Long Island.
On the way over, we stopped at the home of an old maritime buddy of Greg’s, Art and Betsy. Oh my, what an interesting afternoon. Art and Betsy have restored a farmhouse originally from the 1700’s and it is absolutely amazing. It is filled with nooks and crannies and hidden compartments. They have it furnished with all sorts of exotic antiques collected from all over the world during Art’s 30 years of shipping out. It was like being in a museum, only better. Art had a story about every piece, from so very many different countries, like suits of armor, an elephant’s foot, a ship's wheel, port holes and so much more. It was a homeschool mom's dream. Just think of all the history and geography they could learn there! Betsy was such a patient and generous host, plying us with food and answering our many questions. They are both so busy with their jobs and their home, yet still made time for us. I wish we had taken a picture of them. What neat people. Maybe next time. 
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Jun. 9, 2009 Learning to give thanks in all circumstances....
Stranded in Shreveport, LA
Isn’t it funny how unexpected interruptions can sometimes bless you in the midst of a stressful situation? As we headed east from spending the last few months in Texas, our truck overheated on the Texas/Louisiana border. I mean literally on the border. The truck and the camper were on the LA side and the van with the kids and I were on the TX side. God in His providence had provided a pullover area at just the right time. After much waiting for help to arrive, we drove to the nearest motel and Greg drove back to the stranded truck and camper. After all, it is very difficult to find a tow truck able to tow a truck and a 5th wheel late on a Sunday night. Fortunately we were eventually able to obtain someone to help us and he towed it to the motel, since the dealership was closed at midnight. Now this meager motel was nothing to write home about, but, praise God, my kids were such troopers saying things like “it's not so bad” “at least they had a room available etc.” And it was true. While it was definitely not up to preferred standards, it was clean and provided necessities..a bar of soap, clean towels and toilet paper..what more do you need? The six of us managed to fall into an exhausted sleep in two full size beds (not queen size and yes no one complained..that is truly a miracle!) The next morning Greg had the truck towed yet again where it was finally repaired after a couple of days.
What was so revealing to me was how God blessed us in the midst of it. Since we were stuck in Shreveport, LA, we all piled into the van and discovered a charming city. We had a fun time visiting Sci-Port, Louisiana’s Science Museum with our science museum membership, which had lots of fun hands on activities to do, plus we meandered around in shops at the Boardwalk across the way. We enjoyed eating out a couple of nights in a row. My family blessed me another day with a few stolen hours at a lovely art museum called the R.W.Norton Gallery, located there in Shreveport . For some strange reason, the kids preferred to revisit the science museum from the day before rather than roam hallways of artwork.  Imagine that, kids preferring to play instead. This art museum was filled with an eclectic assortment from favorites like Mary Cassatt and Auguste Rodin to major “Western” icons Frederic Remington and Charles Marion Russell. It just did wonders for my soul! I love being reminded of God’s wonderful handiwork in so many different ways. Even the grounds surrounding the museum were beautifully landscaped along meandering walkways. Sigh…isn’t that just like God to bless you when you least expect it.  Greg and the kids picked me up later and we went to the fountains where the two younger ones laughed with delight as they ran through a forest of jumping geysers. Ah....to be young again.
We never did find an affordable restaurant for famous Louisiana cooking where we were at but we had such a good time just being together and not being able to school or work or even do laundry. Greg’s cracked rib got a few extra days to heal as well.
After three nights,(we were able upgrade to two rooms for the remaining two nights), we were finally on our way. After a couple more vehicle/rv “challenges”, shall we say, we eventually made it to South Carolina where Greg’s nephew, Nick, was getting married. We met up with aunts and uncles and cousins, played on the beach, ate good food and had great fun dancing at the wedding. Seeing Aunt Lori, the mother of the groom, rock out made an especially happy memory. 
Here's a picture of the happy newlyweds
Since then the past couple of weeks have been spent finishing up school, becoming acclimated to a new town, and swimming in the pool everyday it isn’t raining. Summer is here.
We spent the weekend in Charlotte, NC (4 hours north) visiting our dear friends, the Hueys. They spoiled us rotten with food and fellowship and we loved every moment of it. Our girls decided to stay on a couple of days visiting with them. We will pick them up on our upcoming trip North to visit lots of family. What a blessed and happy time we had visiting them. Such a special special family! Here's a photo of our Charlotte friends: 
Once again I am so grateful for the little life lessons God is teaching all of us along the way:
To be grateful in all circumstances, to trust His Heart and to seize life’s precious moments. Honestly, in the heat of a challenge, I don't immediately respond well, but I am so grateful to see how God's hand is there all along (whether I realize it at the time or not!)
How great is our God!
Until next time,
Be Blessed! |
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Jan. 18, 2009 Our time in Utah
 Okay, its been a long time since I have been able to post, so grab a cup of coffee or tea and prepare to relax and enjoy lots of pictures while we catch up. Our next stop in our travels landed us in a quiet little campground in Provo, Utah amidst beautiful fall foliage beneath towering snow capped mountains. Every weekend it seemed we were either biking or hiking somewhere enjoying the beautiful scenery surrounding us. It was amazing. We climbed Bridal Veil Falls, where the water was seriously ice cold. We hiked trails through Rock Canyon where the family managed to hike up to a cave in the side of a mountain. We visited Sundance Resort, biked as a family along the Provo River Parkway bike trail that meandered for miles and even managed a couple of homeschool field trips with our friends, the Steeles, to Wheeler Historic Farm and went Geo-caching with them at Jordanelle State Park. Geo-caching there was quite engaging solving the supplied riddles and following our GPS coordinates while exploring the diversified terrain.
Kelly did a wonderful job setting the field trips up for everyone. Oh and what a sweet weekend we had at Kelly and Chris’ home. They made us feel at home where we enjoyed wonderful fellowship, food, and laughter. It was such a precious time getting to know one another better, hearing their hearts for their family and for reaching others. They even had their first Christ Fellowship group online service while we were there. They had 10 people in attendance. (Our two families combined ) Hopefully they will kick it off soon with the other relocated CF families and families from the community. They graciously showed us around Park City, where we shopped and dined and desperately long to come back during ski season.
Since it was autumn, we enjoyed some fun fall activities there. There was a unique display of scarecrows created by local families for their annual tradition of Scarecrow Alley. We also went on a historical reenactment graveyard tour of the Glenwood Cemetery that gave us a glimpse of how the city was founded and the rigors of life in that time period. This is only done around Halloween and was surprisingly quite interesting. Another unusual homeschool outing! 
God providentially brought us to Christ EV Church in Orem, where we met some terrific families that made us feel welcomed. We hung out with the Brandley family several times, doing different things from contests at Macy’s, to pizza at Costco after church, to dinners at their home where we just enjoyed each others company and the kids just had fun bonding. All we originally planned was a hike together as families, which we never did get around to. 
The church itself welcomed us and helped us get plugged in right away through bible studies, youth retreats and children's programs. I was able to attend a Beth Moore Bible Study where I met some really lovely women like Nan Skurga, who has a gift for making make every person feel special. Christy Brandley and I bonded over so many many things, I am so grateful to have met her and made a friend for life. Terry Balian and her daughters made our family feel so at home from the very beginning, starting at the student retreat through bible study and even lunch at Mimi’s. She and her husband unsuspectingly had our family over for dinner, where we enjoyed getting to know one another and laughed and laughed way into the wee hours of the morning. So much fun! The kids are still enjoying the friendships we made and so look forward to returning soon.
 The colder weather was on its way so we had to make our south. We did manage to have our first family snowball fight after church one Sunday. I didn't get a good picture of the snow that day but here is one from later on in the week. It seemed funny to have snow on the ground while there were golden yellow and orange leaves still on the trees. But that is Utah weather I am told. We didn’t have the right gloves but we had so much fun. It's amazing how a snowball fight brings out the kid in you. It had been years since Greg and I threw a snowball. The kids even built a miniature snowman.
Sadly we said our good-byes, including to a campground cat, whom Kristin named Pickles.  This cat would not leave us alone and decided to adopt us while we were there, despite the fact that my family is allergic to cats. He was a very personable cat despite my efforts to the contrary. Eventually we headed 1200 miles southeast to Dallas. We stopped at Arches National Park along the way and saw some unusual rock formations. Yes, I made the kids go see more rocks but they were beautiful! The kids were good sports about it too. Jon helped with the driving, now that he has his permit, and we made it to Dallas in time to visit with the Gregorys and the Durruas before they headed east to Tennessee. We reconnected with the Peck family as well. Having a number of DMD families all together was such fun. Unfortunately due to the upcoming holidays and the nature of the job, it did not allow us a long stretch of time together, so we enjoyed ourselves as much as possible. I felt so blessed. God has indeed placed some incredible people in our lives that we would have missed out on if we were not on this wild journey.
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Nov. 1, 2008 and the deer and the antelope play continued.....
 "You're taking us to see MORE rocks?" wailed the children. Ah, but they had never seen rocks like these before, that's for sure, as we ventured into Bryce Canyon, the land of hoodoos, jagged cliffs, and deep valleys. "Hoo what?" you ask...Hoodoos - strangely shaped rock formations that have been formed when ice and rainwater wear away at the weak limestone that make up much of the canyon. We had a wonderfully exhausting time of hiking, day after day, and then taking much needed soaks in a hot tub at night to ease our poor aching muscles.  (Ruby's Campground lets their campers use the pool and hot tub affiliated with their hotel. We were so blessed!)
 Seeing God's handiwork all around us was just breathtaking. Scenery I had never imagined existed, just spread out before us. The sunrise, Greg and I sneaked out for at Inspiration Point, was just beautiful. Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah is truly worth a visit. We also had a chance to glimpse plenty of wildlife such as Pronghorn Antelope, Mule Deer, Utah Prairie Dogs, Golden Mantle Ground Squirrels, Uinta Chipmunks and a strange looking mammal called "tourist". Oh yes, that was one of us.
Click on the link below called "Bryce Shots" and see a small slide show of our pics. Hope you enjoy!
Bryce Shots
Can you find the Lion Hoodoo in this picture below?
Hint: it is to the right of the tree. Have a wonderful day
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Oct. 13, 2008 Oh give me a home where the buffalo roam and the deer and the antelope play
. Sep. 21, 2008 Blue Skies, Sparkling Water, Towering Orange Cliffs
 Lake Powell, Utah has to be the most beautiful place to enjoy skiing and tubing. We raced up there one weekend from Prescott ( a mere 5 hours) to visit cousins David and Lisa, who were vacationing there while the weather was still warm. We wanted one more chance to see them before we had to leave Prescott for good later in the week. We so enjoyed their company, their generosity, and their sense of adventure! They recently moved into a new home so we didn't get to connect with them this time around as much as we hoped. We will miss them very much! Happy memories have been formed while we were here out west.
Here’s my sweetheart waterskiing…not bad for a 48 yr old!
Here's Dave showing us how it's done!
The birthday cousins deciding whether to scale that mountain!
Lake Powell itself was incredible. The skies were blue, the cliffs just towered above us, and the water was so calm and warm. It was fun to swim, tube, ski and soak in the gorgeous scenery. We even picnicked on a private island and let the kids explore. As the ten of us all jumped in for one last swim before bringing the boat in for the day, a fleeting thought crossed my mind "Who's manning the boat?" Such a glorious day! Here are some photos. Isn't God's handiwork amazing?
  
Look at these cliffs! Incredible!
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Aug. 16, 2008 Can you hear me? Can you hear me now?
 We are in Prescott AZ now. Its very pretty up here and so much cooler in temp than Phoenix. We are in a remote campground since we couldn't find any RV parks that would allow kids. We finally found one and while it's not the best of places, it is very scenic. The funny part is that the only way to get signal on our cell phones is to go climb up high on some rocks just like in the movie "RV." This is a picture of my son finally getting signal for me. By the time I get to the top to make my call, I'm so winded I can't talk! Then, it is what they call "monsoon season" here, so we have to make sure we leave ourselves enough time to get back down the mountain everytime time we see a storm roll in. (The storms, which roll in quickly, are beautiful here, by the way) It is very funny and definitely a challenge to stay in touch with everyone.
The countryside in this part of Arizona is beautiful. The mountains, the sunsets, the rolling green hills ( my soul was thirsty for green after being in the desert for so long), the climbing rocks, the vast expanse of sky, I just keep drinking it all in everytime I'm out and about running my errands.
 We went to downtown Prescott, visited a sweet local museum where my children had more enjoyment from the snail they found outside than the artifacts in the buildings.The ensuing science lesson was much more fun. We've definitely had our fill of pioneer history I'd say. We enjoyed the shops and eateries downtown.
 We visited Jerome,AZ which involved a very scenic drive up through the mountains. The ride just kept getting prettier and prettier. We learned the history of the town ( an old mining town once known as the largest ghost town in the US - Take note of the sign Daniel got a kick out of!) but found God's handiwork so much more interesting. With all the beauty surrounding us, the town seemed more like an eyesore. There was a mineral display, which took ordinary looking rocks, lit a black light by them and displayed beautiful florescent colors. Kind of like what God does with us. He takes ordinary experiences and produces beauty in our lives through them. The town's artist colony was interesting but they all seemed to be trying to imitate nature. The kids decided God was the ultimate artist after all.
We've been enjoying the cooler weather while we try to gear up for the next school year. As a family, we have been getting involved at a local church here, which has been nice. The kids have been hiking all over the terrain as well as taking bike rides to explore the lake. All in all its been beautiful. God has defintely been blessing us again !
Here's the view from our campground
"The Lord God is my strength.
He has made my feet like the feet of a deer,
and He makes me walk on high places."
Habbakkuk 3:19
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Aug. 8, 2008 California Here We Come ( if only for a short while)
 God blessed us again, this time with the opportunity to go see cousins Eric and Eleanor. One weekend we all piled into the van and headed off to San Diego, California to see Eric and Eleanor in their new home. It finally sunk in how far west Phoenix actually is when you realize it is only a short 5-hour drive to San Diego. It was amazing how much the scenery varied along the way in such a short period of time.  There were desert scenes that looked like we were in the Sahara, then rolling green hills and even huge man-made windmills. I had never seen windmills up close before. They truly are enormous.  The final touch was arriving at Eleanor's at sunset and seeing hot air balloons up in the sky. We definitely were not in Kansas any more.
The next day we took the kids to see the Pacific Ocean. The beautiful coastline wasn’t anything like what we see on the East Coast. There was even a mama seal and her baby were swimming nearby. The kids had the opportunity to experience the cold Pacific seawater as opposed to the Gulf Stream back home. My sneakers still smell of the salt water since I wasn't paying attention to the waves. Sigh! We ate delicious Wahoo fish tacos, an apparently San Diego classic.
Later we were lucky enough to spend the evening with Eric’s brother Kyle, who lives in Irvine, Ca. He drove down with his family and his mom and her grandson, who were both visiting from NY. We hadn’t seen any of them since the family reunion in PA last year. Kyle, his wife, Robyn, and Titi Ramona whipped up a gourmet masterpiece while Eleanor and I just sat at the counter and watched the masters at work. It was like watching a cooking show on TV. It was quite educating and entertaining and filling. The food was wonderful. In the meantime, the cousins, all eight of them, had fun running around the house playing 'Sardines'.
The next day Eric and Eleanor took us to the famous San Diego Zoo. Eric even took the day off from work to be with us (a miracle!) I had visited the zoo when I was thirteen years old with my family on vacation and here I was (years later!) with my own 13-year-old daughter. The zoo is still huge and remarkable. All of us had sore feet and big smiles. We saw animal after animal after animal. Kristin took some great pictures!   
It occurred to me that since we started on this traveling adventure, our family has gone to more science museums, art museums, history museums, botanical gardens, national parks, state parks and zoos than I ever thought possible. What a way to experience science and culture while seeing our vast country!
 Speaking of museums, the next day before we left, Eleanor managed to take us to Balboa Park where we went to the Fleet Science Museum and the San Diego Natural History Museum before making the trip back to Phoenix. Here’s a photo of Dan the Shipbuilder.
 One more notable point was when Eric took us to his latest place of employment, an exclusive hotel in the San Diego area where many wealthy and famous people stay. We saw a high-end suite of rooms that are rented out for thousands of dollars per night. The cost to furbish this suite was over 3 million dollars. Could you imagine? Eric took us to eat at the premier Japanese restaurant in San Diego, which was quite an experience. Dish after dish was brought out. So this is what it felt like to feast like kings and queens. Why is it that whenever we are with this side of the family, food has such a primary focus? It is always exceptional with them. For us though, the best part was just being with Eric and Eleanor. Having fellowship with them no matter where they are at in life is always sweet. Being able to come alongside them in prayer is what matters most.
San Diego was certainly one of the prettier towns we have visited. I’m sorry it was such a short visit. We hope to come back for a longer stay and get to see the relatives from the other side of the family who are living here as well. So much to do so little time.
Here we are at the San Diego Zoo!! 
"He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea."Job 9:8
(another photo by Kristin)
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Jul. 23, 2008 Back to Phoenix Again. This time in July!
 We have been quite busy here since we landed back in Phoenix. The boss and his wife so generously blessed us to be able stay in a 2 bedroom apartment for a month rather than the camper so we came here straight from the airport. The next morning we drove 40 minutes back to the camper to prepare to put it into storage. With the high temps out here, that meant we had to take out anything that could be ruined by the high heat, including markers and pens, besides food items and medicines. Weird huh? So we packed up boxes and suitcases of all the things we might need for the summer and moved it back down here. Who knew we could fit so much stuff into that camper! Then we went back up to the campground twice more to straighten more things out with the campground owners, etc. Oh my, we were so tired! Between packing up back home and closing up the house, flying out here, unpacking that stuff and packing up the camper, unpacking the camper stuff in this heat, I was wilting fast. (Can you tell I hate getting old!)  Hence my need to surround us with water whatever way possible! Finally on July 4th we were able to celebrate back at the campground with three other DMD families. We had food, fireworks and just plain fun hanging out and talking. We are all pretty much going in different directions so this was the last time for all of us to be together until who knows when. The fireworks on the reservation were quite extravagant.  The fellowship with one another was sweet. Both the kids and the grownups all had a good time. We celebrated Danny’s birthday in the campground laundry room ? with all of us because 1.) it was air conditioned, 2.) it was clean and 3.) it could fit all 20 of us at once! We just moved our chairs in, brought in the desserts and tadaah!!..... the moms who brought desserts pulled together a party! Campers make do where ever they are!
 Shannon and her kids came down to the apartment for a visit before she headed out for 6 weeks to visit her family. It was nice for us all to visit in a house. The kids and I went back to the campground one day to help Rachel with her kids while she tried to pack for her long journey north. We went down to the fountains and just played and played. Cindy and I have managed to squeeze in a visit with the kids where we visited a local water park here in Chandler. The apartment is quite comfortable. I'm thrilled to have a full sized fridge, dishwasher and washer/dryer. It has made the transition back here after being home so much easier. God is so good to us.   
Photos from our fun day at the fountains with Dan and Rachel's kids. Aren't their kids sweet!
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Jul. 17, 2008 Home Sweet Home
After 5 months out west, we were able to go home for a nice visit. The month home just flew by with God just blessing us every step of the way. Reconnecting with friends, being in our own beds again, and having a big oven to cook in made for a very happy time. Sometimes it takes being away from everyday comforts to help you appreciate what you have. No matter where we travel, we have God, and each other, and that’s what matters most.
God blessed us over and over again throughout our trip. Our flight home included being stuck overnight at the airport in Charlotte, NC but God sent Dan Huey to our rescue! Dan and his wonderful family put us up in their home for the night. Plus fed us breakfast and drove us back to the airport ( a 30-minute drive) the next day. We had such fun fellowship with them. Jody is getting ready to homeschool two of her three children so she and I had lots to talk about. Dan and Greg enjoyed getting reconnected again, as did all the kids. They were such fun to be with. They visited us at the airport again on our return trip back to AZ. We so enjoyed their company. What a sweet and special family!
When we arrived home, God used David D. to come to our rescue, when David arranged for his friend to drive us home from the airport since our travel delay nixed our other ride home – (thanks again David!) We were blessed yet again when we walked through our front door to find that two dear friends had surprised us and cleaned our home for us. Rita, our dear neighbor, and Terri, the sweetest homeschool mom ever, had taken down all our sheet coverings, vacuumed and swept and dusted 5 months worth of dust, wiped down our counters and sinks and more. Rita, Terri and her girls came one Saturday and worked really hard. Rita then came before work that week and did a little each day. There were color coordinating balloons in every bedroom and fresh flowers in the kitchen. I was so blown away! I never knew anyone would love us that much to go out of their way like that. I still get teary eyed. It was such a complete blessing after such a long and weary time of traveling. I am so grateful. Even now a month later, I am still in awe of what God did through them.
 Our time home went by in a whirlwind of catching up with friends, appointments and getting our end of school year evaluations in. It seemed like every day was filled with something. There were play dates, coffee dates and dinner dates. Kimberly was especially blessed to get together with Heidi many times. They never tired of each other! We managed to get to the beach twice. We just had to see the ocean again after so much time out West. Riding our boogie boards, body surfing and just plain swimming in the warm blue ocean as a family was wonderful! And yes, some us did get the dreaded sea lice but it was worth it. (I think) We were also able to squeeze in a 3 hour drive west one weekend to see Uncle Ray and his family. My parents had flown to down to their place for a wedding so I brought the kids out to see them. It was a happy reunion, visiting the grandparents and relatives, eating my aunt's cooking and relaxing in my uncle's beautiful clear blue pool. Lisa and her daughter Alyssa came and visited with us. Ray Jr and his wife Theresa came the next day to see us. It had been two years since we had last seen that side of the Seise family yet it seemed like just yesterday. We had another special treat when Mom and Dad took the kids and I to see the "Prince Caspian" movie and then out to dinner before we needed to drive back home. It was so good to be able to see them again. We miss them so much. Back home, since I did not go to the homeschool convention this year, God once again provided by allowing me to hook up with other more experienced homeschool moms. They so generously poured their experience into me on how to homeschool my high schooler this upcoming year on the road. I was so grateful. Greg had to fly back to AZ for work but came home that last week to help close up the house and do the hurricane prep. Poor Greg, it seems like we had all the fun while he workd so hard in the Arizona heat.
 It was incredibly healing to reconnect with the Zayas, hanging out often with Mingo and Rita, seeing the kids play together hours on end all just served to soothe my heart and make me feel like I belonged. The kids had a blast making home movies together that just made us laugh and laugh.  Kristin took the big plunge and had her hair cut off to donate it to Locks for Love, a non-profit organization, which provides real hair wigs, for children with cancer and other illnesses.
It was nice to listen to our kids play on our piano again and Jon on his guitar. Letting the younger ones have their Legos all spread out on the floor for days at a time and being in our own beds was just what we all needed to refresh our batteries before getting back on the road. I have to confess though, after all the running around getting everything done, a part of me was longing to get back on the road again, and our simpler life. I needed a rest from our vacation at home!
All in all it was a "home sweet home" visit. God was there every step of the way and what’s even better is to rest in the assurance that He is with us every step of the way no matter where He leads us. So thank you, God, for a great trip home and thank you for our next adventure.
  
Happy Beach Days!
Till we meet again! |
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May. 31, 2008 East end of Phoenix
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 The three families left Central Phoenix and headed to the northeast end of Phoenix where the work now was. We ended up in a different campground on a reservation nestled in the mountains. It is quieter here, the stars are brighter at night, the opportunities to see wild life are more abundant and the kids are thrilled because they serve donuts every morning in the clubhouse. We have beautiful views of the mountains when we step out of our campers and see God’s Hand in nature. The campground is affiliated with a local hotel so we have access to their two pools and workout room which is a nice change for the kids. They also have here on the campground premises a pool and a hot tub, a pool table, big screen tv with cable and access to 4 computers. Talk about roughing it! So even though we are in a remote place, we have all the amenities. Kind of distracting though when we were trying to finish up the school year. But we are practically finished now.
 We continue to enjoy spending time with our cousins and revisited the Botanaical Gardens and climbed the Red Rocks at Papago Park.  The kids and I spent time with Cindy and her kids having a picnic down at the fountain and swimming at the hotel pool. For us as a family, we have visited some churches and had the opportunity to hear author Kevin Lehman speak. The AC went out on our van when it was 107 degrees out one Sunday but God in His mercy brought a cold front in and it went down to the 60’s the rest of the week until the weekend when we could take it in to be repaired. Oh we are so blessed! I can't tell you how relieved I am to have AC back. I am truly a pampered child, not a pioneer woman. How did they ever survive out here back then? It is supposed to climb to 120 this summer. My oh my! We are flying home for a month next week and are very excited. Just to be with our friends and church family will be a welcome treat.
Here's a photo of our Phoenix cousins!
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May. 17, 2008 Back in Phoenix again
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 It's time to update you on where we are in our travels! We said goodbye to Texas after 5 months and headed off 1000 miles further west to Arizona. We did some sight seeing stops along the way like visiting the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum in Las Cruces, NM and the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument in AZ. In one of our overnight lunar landing type RV stops, we came across this flower blooming in the middle of desert sand. God's reminder to bloom where ever He sends us.
We arrived in Phoenix to be warmly welcomed by the other DMD familes that were already here.  Rachel blessed us with a fully prepared meal for the weary travelers. I was so grateful. All the DMD kids were soon reunited and happy hugs were all around. The next day we visited cousin David and his family, where we had birthday pie and had a memorable time getting reacquainted. It was so good to reconnect with them.
David and Jamie flew out with their younger children and we all had a fun filled week together going to the movies, Sunday afternoon company picnic at a nearby park, pizza while being entertained by an incredible pipe organ, fun afternoons by the pool. As moms, the five of us were able to sneak away for dessert and coffee one evening for fellowship and lots of laughter. It’s always fun when the Durrua’s come into town and everyone makes time to get together. Jamie definitely spoils us.
 Birthdays, birthdays and more birthdays. We have been having fun celebrating the girls' birthdays here in Arizona. We celebrated with the cousins as Lisa made us delicious meals and we brought the birthday cakes. The cousins have been having lots of fun hanging out together while the old grownups enjoy chatting. Kimberly had a movie date and ice cream with Cindy and Greg’s daughter, Stephanie. We had cake at the campground with the other DMD families as well.  Having two birthdays three days apart is a calorie rich ordeal that we all suffered through shamelessly. Yum Yum. The girls are growing up so fast. Our youngest daughter turned 8 and is quite the mother’s helper. Our eldest daughter turned 13 and had some new privileges added to her life. Help! I now have two teenagers in a 32 ft camper …plus does the word peri-menopause cause you any concern? Pray for us all!!! Only kidding. We have the best kids in the world and their teenage years have been and are going to be our best together ever. Pastor Tom back home always shared that the teenage years don’t have to be the dreaded years. We are so fortunate because we really enjoy sending time with them. They are so funny and such fun to be with. We are so blessed.
Phoenix this time around has been different. We have been staying in a more central location so access to everything has been soooo much easier than last year. Rachel and Shannon have the routine down on the best way to save money grocery wise with weekly sales etc so I have been so blessed to glean from their findings. Seeing the three familes’ children interact again has been fun as everyone has grown up so much in the year we’ve been apart. It’s a blessing for the little ones to have friends to play with and for the adults to be able to hang out and have a little fellowship. There are some other DMD employees here as well. Between the families at the campground, visiting Cindy and her family, (my 10 yr old son is having a blast with their 10 yer old son), visiting cousin David and his family, we have been filling up our love tanks on company.  But the piece de resistance was on the 18th of April when my cousins Eric and Eleanor were driving from Trinidad, Colorado to San Diego, CA where they are relocating to and they had an overnight stop in Phoenix. We surprised the younger kids (I couldn’t keep it from the teenagers so they were in on it) when we drove up to the hotel and there was their aunt and uncle and their cousins unpacking their van. They were so thrilled to see their cousins, and to go out to dinner together. Then we topped it off by staying at the hotel and had breakfast the next morning with them as well. We ended up spending the weekend at the hotel. Oh my, I can’t begin to tell you how fun it was to stay in two adjoining rooms where each room alone was soooo much bigger than our camper. Oh happy day to not have to cook, clean or school for two whole days. We just relaxed.....
Here's a pic of us at the Casa Grande Ruins, helps you appreciate how 'grande' they really were
Last but not least, our latest motley crew photo Till next time...
P.S. Happy 87th Birthday Grandma Wood!!! Hope you liked your surprise!!!
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May. 3, 2008 God's Blessings
My dear friend from back east is dying of cancer. As I hear from her family of how much she is suffering in these final stages, my heart longs to cry out why must she suffer so? She has been such a godly person, loving Jesus with all her heart. But I realize my ways are not God’s ways and while I may want her to remain here with us for many years to come for selfish reasons, God is calling her home to be with Him and she’ll be dancing with Her Savior soon. I grieve for her family, for her suffering, for the loss she will be in so many lives and yet I am so grateful to have had her as a friend these past 27 years. I’m grateful for the unconditional love she showed me when I felt so unlovable and for pointing me toward Christ so many many times. I’m also thankful for the conversations we were able to have by phone these last few months while she was still lucid, conversations where we were able to tell each other how much our lives had been impacted by the friendship God blessed us with. We’ve been through so much together.
Why is it tragedy or death serves as such a great reminder to appreciate the people we have in our lives now while we are still with them? Although my family and I may not get to see our friends and loved ones as much as we used to now that we are on the road, we think of the many special people in our lives often and are grateful for the time we have had together. I am so grateful for the friends that have kept in touch with us via email and phone calls. Being on the road has shown us how important people are in our lives. I’m so grateful for the ones who make time for us whenever we are in town, be it meeting for dinner or a quick cup of coffee or making time in their schedule for a play date with their kids and ours. Coming home would not be the same without the warm welcome we get from the people who love us and want to spend time with us.
God has blessed us so much in so many ways. He truly meets all of our needs, maybe not my wants like with my friend’s illness, because He has a better plan but He definitely meets our needs. The wonderful people we have met in our travels who still connect with us are such an example. I never would have imagined all the inspiring people He would allow us to have fellowship with. I’ve asked God how can I bless the people He is putting in my path today and instead I am the one being blessed. So thank you to all our friends back home, our family back east, and all the many friends and family across the country that we have been privileged to visit with. Thank you for sharing your lives with us. Thank you for bieng part of our journey. May you feel God’s Love and Blessing upon you today.
Thank You God for the gift of my friend, Tina, for the light she has been in so many many lives.
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Apr. 9, 2008 San Marcos, Texas
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 Time flies when you’re having fun and even when you are just busy. We had been traveling around to different towns in Texas due to the nature of dh’s job. We were blessed to land in some picturesque campgrounds as well as some very remote ones. Those oil refineries all lit up in the distance at night made quite the eerie impression when we were down near the Gulf.
Our last stop in Texas was in San Marcos, a small rural town, whose main claim to fame seems to be the abundance of outlet stores.
Some wonderful new friends were made at a campground there. We were able to bless and be blessed by Carrie and her family and Ava and her sweet son. Such fun kids to play with. Bows and arrows were made from branches and sticks. Add a little imagination and soon the kids were doing reenactments from the Lord of the Rings. Lazy afternoons (after all schoolwork was completed, of course) consisted of bike riding, Frisbee throwing, tossing a football around and swimming in the heated pool. This is what childhood is supposed to be about. We went to Easter service, had an Easter egg hunt back at the campground with the other two families, where we were introduced to Confetti Eggs and had fun combing all the confetti and egg shells out of our hair. We also had a wonderful game of family football where even the moms played. I laughed so hard playing with all the adults and kids. Lots of laughter, lots of fun and some sore muscles were felt the next day.
 Later in the week, we celebrated our son's 10th birthday with cake and ice cream and all our campground friends before jumping into the pool. Such sweet families and happy memories were had here.
Here are some more photos of some of the fun we had here
is this your typical river monster? Havin fun before the rapids
 
Our daughter picking wild flowers picked on Easter Sunday
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Feb. 25, 2008 History, history and more history in Austin
We were able to squeeze in a visit to downtown Austin. The business district, near the university, was very pretty and clean. I was surprised when the kids commented on how friendly the people were, whomever we asked information of were always so helpful and pleasant. We saw the Blanton Museum of Art, the Texas State History Museum, and the Capitol Building, which was the most beautiful. I expected the Capitol Building to be a quick run through at the end of the day but we ended up spending quite some time there, admiring the architecture and many other things. The outer buildings and outside rounda were fun to explore. The younger ones were excited to step inside the Governor’s Public Reception Room and the Law Library where people were actually working. We learned quite a bit about Texas history and politics. 
We also spent some time in the Texas State History Museum. It is a new building with an incredible mosaic on the floor as you enter the building that represents the spirit of Texas. There is plenty to see there as well but we only saw a bit.
The art museum was not the kids’ favorite but they were willing to go for my sake since they know how crazy I am about art museums. They hung in there and did well. On Sunday, we went as a family to a presidential library, the Lyndon B. Johnson Library. It was quite a treat. The kids saw a lot of what we had been studying and had some questions answered. For my husband and I, it filled in a lot of the gaps of things that happened when we were quite young and had not managed to get into the history books while we were in school.
I think my younger ones have had their fill of history for now. They were good sports about it but they enjoy the science museums so much more. We did manage to get together with Mitch R and his family for dinner again, enjoying more laughter and good conversation. What a sweet family! God has blessed us indeed on this journey through the states.
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Feb. 23, 2008 just a quick note
Hey there family and friends back east. Just wanted to let you know that due to some security measures that I should have been using before and I am now aware of, I will no longer be mentioning the names of my husband and children in our posts. In the future, all names of other family and friends will be not include last names. I'm not trying to be impersonal (to those of our family who are new to the blogging world and are just logging in to keep updated of our travels) - just trying to be safe. I went back and made the appropriate changes on older posts. Sorry about that and thanks for understanding. |
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Feb. 21, 2008 Our First Blowout
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While traveling to Austin from southern Texas, a tire on our camper had a blowout. God had us in the palm of His Hand because it happened during daylight hours, the weather was clear, and it was near an exit. My husband was able to get the camper off the highway and pulled into a Lowe’s. While taking the kids into the store to wash up, we were able to reiterate a science lesson on flower anatomy in the garden department. Oh what beautiful flowers they have in there at this time of year! We also did some shopping for work supplies for dh. Meanwhile, he was able to pump up the spare and change the tire to get us back on the road. My hero! God blessed us every step of the way. Thank you, Lord!
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Feb. 15, 2008 Cast Off and a Birthday
Hurray for our daughter. She got her cast off this week. Poor thing broke her arm the night before we flew back to San Antonio while horseback riding with a friend back home. After arriving in TX, we took her to an urgent care facility where they verified that she did indeed break her arm and would need a cast, much to her own disbelief. She has a high pain tolerance and didn’t even want to go to the doctor. Three weeks later the doctor x-rayed her again and said she needed to remain in a cast. Weeks later, after yet another x ray she now only has a brace to wear. She was such a trooper through it all. God was so good. The injury was mild, the doctors we led to were good and we actually had wonderful medical insurance, thanks to DMD.
We also said goodbye to San Antonio after almost 4 months. We had such a pleasant stay here. We shall miss our new friends and are grateful God allowed us this experience. We packed up and drove to Rockport, Texas a little beachside town just outside of Corpus Christie, where Greg has some work.
Today is our eldest son’s 15th birthday. My husband and I danced this morning remembering how we danced just prior to our son’s birth. We were so full of wonder and excitement as we welcomed our firstborn into our lives. He has indeed been a precious gift of God as his name implies.
We are so proud of you, son, for who you are now and the man you are becoming. Life on the road has brought you some challenges that you have risen to with integrity and strength. You’ve stretched yourself scholastically, socially and spiritually as you’ve traveled the country with your family in a 32 foot camper. May you never lose your sense of humor or your sense of adventure! Happy Birthday! |
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We actually saw buffalo, deer, and antelope within days of each other as we headed into Utah. We said goodbye to our friends in Prescott and headed north to visit a previously unexplored state for us, Utah. 
