Twins Fever

We've had a very fun and busy weekend! We have been blessed to have had alot of family time; each moment has been treasured!

On Friday, our daughter-in-law Becky came to spend the afternoon and evening with us. It was so much fun to catch up with her and hear the latest news about their "house-hunting" process. We are also excited to see that her little one is growing!

On Saturday afternoon, J&K stopped by briefly before they joined their friends at the Angels Stadium for the Twins-Angels baseball game. You can't see it in this picture, but Jayden just got his second tooth! This was Jayden's first baseball game and he was dressed well for his role as a Twins fan!Jayden was also able to sit by himself for the first time in this little rocking chair that his grandmother had when she was a little girl.

The family was all set for the game. (By the way, the Twins won the game!)

On Sunday, following our morning church service, we joined several other family members for the afternoon game between the Twins and Angels. The Angels stadium is beautifully unique.

And of course, being southern California, the beautiful palm trees are in abundance all around the ball park.

These girls certainly enjoyed themselves during the game!

There were over 40,000 people in attendance at the game that afternoon.

We were surprised to see several other loyal Twins fans sprinkled throughout the sea of red! And we all cheered very loudly for our team. The Twins were ahead for most of the game, but alas, that winning streak did not last...

Every time the home team did something fantastic, the fireworks were blasted into the air and the loud yelling and music filled the stadium. It was actually quite impressive! Sometime in the future we will attend an evening game and get the full effect from the fireworks...and when the Twins aren't around, we will cheer for the red team...

Thanks to Kari for organizing this family event. We will certainly miss this "social secretary" when she leaves in a few days! She kept going strong during the game, even though she had just finished working three 12-hour shifts! Following the game, everyone (except J&K) came to our house for supper. We enjoyed several hours of visiting together. Then in the evening Kari, M&B joined us in watching the closing celebration for the 2008 Olympics.
The closing event was certainly filled with fireworks and fanfare. It was an awesome way to end a really fun day!

PS Weekend

This past weekend we were able to get away for a little R&R. We were invited to spend the weekend with our friends Bob and Jan at their beautiful home in Palm Springs. The weather was very hot (it reminded us of the hot season in Africa, and the city really reminded us of Maroua!), but we were thankful that we could enjoy the wonderful air conditioned homes and cars! On Saturday afternoon, we went for a sight-seeing tour of the city.

The view of the city from the surrounding hills.

Lots of palm trees and everything was green because the natural springs provide plenty of water for the city and valley.

A beautiful home and yard

Typical southwestern style

Another view

It took a bit of time and patience, but soon Patch, the dog, accepted us as part of the family!

Thanks Bob and Jan for a relaxing and wonderful weekend together!

After church and a relaxing meal with friends, we headed back home. Just outside of Palm Springs, is an area that is covered by wind generators.

The slow rotations of these giant turbines is certainly mesmerizing! We arrived at J&K's to find our sons very occupied with their fantasy football draft picks. Being the loyal Viking fans that they are, they were dressed for the day!

Even this little boy was dressed for the occasion! But he certainly had better things to occupy his time...

It was so much fun to see how well he can now sit!

Jayden has also discovered his feet!

Of course, the Olympics captured all of our attention also!

After a delicious supper together, we bid our farewells and headed back home through the Badlands toward the big cities.

When we arrived home, we were greeted by these visitors! Ronda and her husband Brian had come for the weekend to visit Kari (on the right). It was a special treat to see Ronda again, after five years, and also to meet her husband Brian.

Even though the visit was short, we appreciated that they took the time to drop by.

On Monday evening, Kari dropped by for another visit and also took us out for dinner (thanks Kari!). It is hard to believe that her time here in the area is coming to an end. In about a week, she will be once again packing her bags and moving on to her next assignment. We will miss her so much, but are so thankful that we have had these few months to spend some time together.

And we know that she is getting anxious to try out her new sandals in Africa! Our prayers and thoughts go with you Kari, as you continue your adventures!

Time in Santa Monica

We are still enjoying exploring different places in our area. One place that we've talked about visiting for the past year is the Museum of Tolerance. Last Friday I was able to leave work a bit early, so we could avoid the worst of the freeway traffic, and we headed for downtown LA. We were not allowed to take any pictures inside the museum, so you will have to check it out for yourself at http://www.museumoftolerance.com/

It was a fascinating place to visit and we were actually able to see all three of the displays that were offered. The main event, of course, was about the Holocaust. But the display that we found most interesting was the one about the Chinese and Jews. We were not aware that China has several areas where large groups of Jewish refugees, from both Russia and Europe, have settled. The history was fascinating!

When the museum closed at 5PM, we still had alot of evening ahead of us. Since we were close to Santa Monica, we decided to head for the beach and see what we could find...

The view of the ocean as we approached was spectacular!
It was quite windy and there were several people that were surfing.
We walked along the beach and headed for the famous Pier.
We walked under the pier (it reminded us of all those movie scenes where some villain chase ends up, and they have to dodge the bullets as they hide behind the pillars...)
Up above, we watched as the kids enjoyed the entertainment rides.
The view along the coast was so beautiful.
Here we are--all wind-blown!
Just before we headed back to our car, a band started giving a mini-concert on the beach just below the pier. They were actually pretty good!
And of course, there was also a beautiful old carousel that we had to stop and admire!
On the walk back to the parking lot, we passed this strange-looking growth on this palm tree! It reminded us of some sort of alien wearing a wig!We arrived at our car just as the sun was setting. There we were treated not only to a beautiful sunset, but we also got to watch a couple of young guys on roller blades "wind surfing" with their kites. It was a lovely outing and we were blessed once again by all the beauty around us, and the freedoms that we enjoy in this great land that we live in.

Two Special Girls

Over the years, we have had the privilege of being involved with many people from all over the world. One of the most treasured relationships we have is that of our fellow missionaries. Some of our fellow workers were indeed family members, but many were not blood relatives. However, through our shared experiences, our joys and sorrows, many of these co-workers are as close as any family tie we could ever have.

Last weekend, we had the privilege of honoring these two special young ladies. We have known them from infancy and even enjoyed having one of them live in our home for a year while she attended school with our sons. Suzy has recently returned home after living and working overseas for the past several years. Stephanie was being honored for her academic achievements and has now moved on to her new place of employment.
As always, being with this wonderful family proved to be an international experience!
We wish these two young ladies God's very best as they begin new jobs and adapt to new communities.

Giggles

We are very sorry that we can't figure out how to rotate this video...you'll just have to turn sideways to view it. But it is well worth the effort, and we hope that you will smile and laugh along with us as you enjoy our grandson and his parents. There truly is nothing better than the uninhibited laughter of children!