The Emerald City

I'm alive! (In case any of you were wondering.) I haven't driven off the side of a cliff or been eaten by a big hairy monster.

We were on vacation in Seattle. We flew out to visit our buddies Robert and Wendy. It was a much needed time away from the craziness of life, work and wedding planning.


(I'd like to take a moment to give a shout out to my friend Jamie for taking my dog for the week. She's mom to Tilla (Havana's sister) and when those two get together, they tend to get a little crazy sometimes. Jamie, here's to you. You're a brave soul. And a HUGE blessing.)

Anyway, Seattle. It's been gorgeous weather the whole time. Sunny and mid-70's. This place is beautiful! Being born and raised in Colorado sort of taints your idea of what trees are, but now I know better. Those puny little excuses for trees that we have don't even begin to compare.

We went to Pike Market. We sampled some fantastic cheese and olive oil.


Chris ate a 1.13 pound apple. Then he felt sick.


Sunday after church we went on a picnic.


Here's Mocha, the cutest little rescue mutt you'll ever see.


Then a stop at Snoqualmie Falls. They're taller than Niagara.


Yesterday we went downtown to a Music and Arts Festival. Which, we found out, is secret code for Where the Weird People Gather. Because the place was packed with more bare skin, cleavage, stretch marks, tattoos, piercings, hemp clothing and dreadlocks then I have ever seen. Apparently Seattle has quite a large population of very hurting people who are desperate for attention.


Last night we went out for seafood at this great place called Chinook, right on the water. Fresh seafood is the BEST. Afterwards, we walked along the docks and checked out all the yachts.


So tonight we return to real life. Back to C. Springs ... the land of cookie cutter housing, strip malls, baby "trees" and urban diahhrea.

Home, sweet, home.

Hope for Africa

My friend Katy is in Rwanda right now.

God laid Africa on her heart a long time ago and she's always known that she would spend time there. It was just a matter of when.

Earlier this year, she decided that it was time to go. So she booked herself a ticket to Rwanda. No agenda, no group, no specific plans. Just Katy and God.

Before this trip she'd never been out of the country before. Although I'm sure she's experienced moments of culture shock, her emails are full of the amazing things God is teaching her. I find them very moving, so I asked if I could share some of the with you. Of course, she said yes. Here's part of her most recent email ...

Hope for Africa. Many moments here, as I walk down the streets, grief-stricken by the poverty I see, I wonder if there really is hope. However, God is evident here. I see Him everywhere, especially in the eyes of Deborah.

This 2-year-old has unique needs, as she has cerebral palsy. With shame, I admit my initial discomfort with Deborah. She drools constantly. She smells of urine as she wets her diapers frequently. She is always covered in dirt from frequent falls. However, this cannot touch her startling beauty. Of the 29 incredible children of New Hope Homes, Deborah has an extra glimmer and shine in her eyes. Oh! How I long to see the world through her eyes! When she sees me, she squeaks with joy and runs, longing to be picked up and held.

Yesterday was a particularly hard day. Gilbert shared his first hand encounter with the horrors of the genocide and my heart felt broken. I walked back into the Home, and Deborah was at the gate, waiting for me. She ran as fast as she could, drooling, wet, and dirty. Yet this time, as I picked her up, I couldn't let her go. I wouldn't. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I hugged this little one. In her eyes, there is love. In her eyes, there is hope. And there is no shame. Yet again, a child taught me a lesson about our Jesus. I am Deborah. I am handicapped, weak, smelly, and covered in filth. So many times, while in this state, I am to ashamed to come to Jesus, to run to Him. I want to clean myself up and not be seen as I really am. Now, Deborah's vulnerability has changed my heart. Whenever I see Deborah, all I want to do is pick her up, twirl her around, and remind her that she is a beautiful, loved child of the King! My friends, I believe with all my heart that God wants me, and all of us, to come to Him with the same vulnerability.

Here's a picture of Katy and me.

Pray for her. She is a lot braver than most people I know. She has put herself completely in God's hands, not knowing what will come next.

Katy is showing me the true meaning of faith.

On My Mind ...

A little free association for this Wednesday morning. Welcome to my brain.

My legs are jello. I went back to spin class this morning, for the first time in, oh ... three months or so. I used to go 2-3 times per week consistently. I had some pretty good motivation to get in shape back then. Winter's coming on fast, though, so I'm trying to get back into groove.

Speaking of winter, I heard on the radio the other day that according to an almanac from, like 1957 or something, this winter is predicted to be one of the worst in recent history. Ugh. I'm still recovering from the winter we had two years ago. I'm not sure I'm ready for this.

I'm excited that reality TV season is starting up again! I've missed it. The Biggest Loser (a.k.a. Big Fat Loser) started last night. And I hear that The Amazing Race has a new season starting. (John, wish you were here!) And also Survivor. Which I haven't watched for a long time, but which is primarily responsible for originally cultivating my taste for reality TV. (At least if we are dumped on with snow we'll have something to do.)

Here's some good news ... we only have about six weeks left of political ads. Isn't that great? This election will be interesting. I'm actually kind of excited to vote! And I'm even more excited that the ads will stop.

My boss just stopped by my desk with donuts. I just three hours ago kicked off my new health goals and now this. How's that for timing? Get thee behind me, donuts! Thankfully, I was able to abstain. If they were Krispy Kremes, I might have been doomed, but they were only Dunkin Donuts.

I have started a Clothing Coop with a couple friends from work. Through a random Sisterhood-of-the-Traveling-Pants-esque situation last week, we discovered that we are all the same size. So we decided to hail back to our college days where roommates shared a communal wardrobe. I'm very excited about this Coop! We haven't worked out all the details yet, but we will most likely trade items on a monthly basis. (Although just between you and me, I do think I'm getting the far better end of the deal.) Both girls have a much more distinct style then I do. Maybe I'll post a picture of me wearing a new Coop outfit.

Happy Hump Day.

The Perfect Day

Saturday was Gor. Geous.

We hiked The Crags, a trail near Cripple Creek. This has to be one of my favorite hikes near the Springs. We couldn't have asked for a better day. Here are some photos. (It'll almost be like you're hiking with us.)

Jamie and I are excited!


Jamie and Chris gaze at the view. This view is just a preview, though, of what's ahead.


Havana and me on top of the world. The view behind us is 360 degrees.


This guy was like the bird whisperer. He held food in his hand and they'd come land. It was awesome.


Tilla and Havana. You have no idea how hard it is to get a good picture of the two of them. This might be my favorite.


Ooh. This guy is my favorite, too.


Jamie loves hugs so much, we try to oblige her as often as possible.


Intense. That's what this picture is.


On the way back we stopped to sit on a giant rock and enjoy the sun. Here's the view.


Devil's Playground and the back side of Pikes Peak behind us.


Jamie, contemplating life.


I love pictures of Aspen trees.

On the way home we stopped at this place called Jo Mama's and ate the best pizza I've ever had. I'm not exaggerating. If you ever drive through Woodland Park, you should definitely stop there. Then we got some Blue Bell ice cream.

Ahhhh. This is what life is about.

Aloha!

Aloha from The Big Island! We made it here without any flight problems and have been living it up Hawaiian style.

The Big Island is really the place to come if you want to experience Hawaii the way the locals do ... I've been very pleasantly surprised at the lack of tourists here. Even in the "touristy" locations there aren't really crowds.

Three days so far, and here's a list of the things we've done:

Rainbow Falls (we swam in a lagoon behind the falls - ask Jamie about her little "adventure")
Boiling Pots
Onamea Bay (unreal picture place)
Akaka Falls (OH-mazing)
Hapuna Beach (comparable to the beaches in Costa Rica, which I thought would never be matched)
Malasadas at Tex's Drive In (it's official - we shall come home FAT)
Hilo Farmer's Market (where the real hippies gather)
Volcano National Park (looks a lot like Mordor)
Champagne Pond (a lava heated natural pool up against the ocean)

We're scheduled for a luau on Tuesday (my birthday.) I'm also excited about hiking in Waipio Valley and snorkeling at Captain Cook's Monument.

This place is seriously awesome. The best part is the laid-back island feel - it really is a slower pace of life. I could definitely get used to it. Pretty much everything to do is free and there are very little restrictions about where you can go. Seriously, if you ever get the chance visit this island, do it.

I'm on my friend Suzanne's computer so I'll just post the one picture for now.

See ya when I'm 30. :)

Tuesday's Update

So. It's been a few days. But I have some news for you ...

1. This is Hawaii week! (Ok, that's not news. I've already blabbed about it enough.) I've been checking the weather online daily, and although it's supposed to rain a lot while we're there, they keep adding more and more sunny days. WOOHOO! Still, I bought a new rain jacket (sort of a foreign concept in Colorado.)

2. I have a new job! It was rather sudden to me and I'm still transitioning mentally and emotionally. But it was too great an opportunity to pass up. I'm still working at Compassion, but now I'll be working on the field communications team doing crisis communications. It wasn't something I'd planned, but it seems God had other ideas. And I'm learning that when I listen to Him, things tend to work out.

3. A week from today I turn 30. That's a big one. I know this will be a special birthday because I already received the best gift I've ever gotten. In my life. My friend Karen (with the help of my brother) coordinated getting all my friends, family and coworkers to write letters to me telling me what I mean to them. Then she put them in this really cool album with some photos. Seriously, guys, you have NO IDEA what this means to this "words of affirmation" girl. It's like a grown-up yearbook, only 1,000,000 times better. I used to read the messages people wrote in my yearbook over and over again. You can bet I'll be reading those letters over and over again! To everyone who contributed, I can't really explain to you what it means to me. Thank you for already making this the best birthday ever. I love you!

Skip's Heart

My best friend got married young. I remember when she first told me about him. We were in high school driving up to Woodland Park and she couldn't stop talking about this guy. He worked in the mailroom where she worked. I met him a few days later at a Newsboys concert. And from that day on, Carolyn was Ted'n'Carolyn.

Ted is a close friend of mine. (The rest of the world calls him Skip, but he's still Ted to me. Probably always will be.) He's a Godly man, has a wicked funny sense of humor and is an amazing husband and father.

Anyway, God is doing something really cool in Ted's life right now. He's lighting this fire for social justice in his heart ... and it's so exciting to watch!

Here's his post from today.
I can't wait to see what God has in store for him next!

Section 16

Today we hiked a trail called Section 16. Kind of a weird name. (Sounds more like a place where they hide UFO's.) Sweet hike, but longer than we expected.

Here you can see the back of the Garden of the Gods...


Jamie and the Beckys. Can someone say Olan Mills?


Havana ran around so much she must have done 20 miles to our 6. She was shaking by the time we got back to the car. But she loved it!

Moo Dang, that was good!

A little over a year ago my friend Wendy and I started a monthly cooking night. The idea was that we would pick a type of ethnic food that neither of us had cooked before and learn how to cook it. We pick an appetizer, a few dishes, a typical drink and a dessert.

For the first 10 months or so it was just Wendy and me. Then our friend Jamie joined us. Each month we seem to have one or two new people. 16 months later it's turned into a full-fledged party! (Sadly, Wendy moved to Seattle a few months ago, but we've carried on the tradition.)

Last night was Thai night. Julisa and I hosted it at our house.

Here's Julisa making Tom Ka Gai.


Heidi works on her masterpiece, Pad Thai.


It was a lot of work, but worth it in the end. Ta da!


Bring on the grub!


Here is the yummy looking Thai salad, made by the lovely Suzanne.


Suzanne and I ready to eat!


Here is the finished product:
Tom Ka Gai, Mango Sticky Rice, Thai Iced Tea, Pad Thai, Thai Salad, Chicken Satay, and last but not least ... Moo Dang!


And for a close-up ...
Are you hungry yet?

In case you were wondering ... here's a list of what we've made so far. Any suggestions for next month?

Jan - New England
Feb - Greek
Mar - French
Apr - Hawaiian
May/June - Mexican
Jul - Japanese
Aug - Spanish
Sept - Italian
Oct - Caribbean
Nov - Indian
Dec - Moroccan
Jan - Argentinian
Feb - German
Mar - Irish
Apr - Thai

Party Like it's 1978

Many of my friends are turning 30 this year. So it ought to be a year full of celebrations. What better way to start things off than kickin' it 70's style with fashions from the year we were born?

My friend Suzanne, the birthday girl.


Jared, of the incredibly tight pants. (Be thankful they're out of view.)


And what good party is complete without disco tunes on the karaoke machine?

CHEESE!

A few months ago I was watching my friends' kids while they had a night out. We found the camera and decided to leave their mom and dad a little surprise ...

The photos were discovered today.


(The second picture of Ani makes me laugh SO hard.)

The Newest Angel

How do I comfort a friend who lost her daughter today?
What do I say that won't sound trite or cliche?
Is there anything I can do to take some of the sorrow away?

Katie was actually the reason I spent so much time with the Mugeles, at least at the beginning. When I was still a young high school student, I learned to use her feeding tube and adjust her oxygen levels and set up her wheelchair. She is such a huge part of my life with the Mugele family, it's hard to imagine life without her.

But Katie walked for the first time today!
The first words she ever spoke were to her Father.
Pretty freakin' awesome, huh?

I love you, Katie. I'll miss you a lot.