A Door Has Been Opened

Jacob got home from working at the theater last night, and ran into the house yelling, "Mom!  Mom!  Guess what?!"

He was so excited!  I couldn't wait to hear his good news, but held my breath at the same time, not knowing for sure if I would think his "great news" truly was "great news." 

James B left him a voicemail while he was at work, asking him if he could drop everything and come with their youth group to New Orleans for the National Youth Conference.   (Blessing #875)  I think it's actually with Judy's youth group, but when one of their sponsors was unable to go at the last minute, Jacob's name popped into their minds. 

Earlier this year, Jacob offered to be a sponsor for our church's National Youth Conference, but it didn't work out. They had enough sponsors with parents who were going along. Jacob was bummed, but he accepted it and thought, "next time."

But that all changed yesterday . . .
We talked about how God is opening this door for him.  What you may not know, is that Jacob has actually been praying about going into Youth Ministry.  It's been on his mind for a few months now.  So, this is such a great opportunity for him. 

So . . . all you prayer warriors reading this post . . . please join me in praying for Jacob, as he leaves this afternoon for a week with a bunch of kids he's never met before, and for his role as a leader for Judy's youth group this week.  It'll be a great week!  Here's a short video about the Conference.


Challenge 2012 Promo 2 HD from ReachStudents on Vimeo.

We've Been "Flamingo'ed"!

Last weekend, Jenica had a softball tournament in a little town near Lincoln . . . Wahoo is such a strange name for a town.  Anyway, we met up with Chad's sister Dani's family and his brother Noel at a park near Dani's home in Lincoln for a picnic before heading to the tournament in Wahoo.  (Blessing #867)

Dani & Steve had a baby girl on June 5th ~ Erica Corrin.   (#868)  Here's a picture of a proud Uncle Chad holding her while she was still in Children's hospital. LOVE the name Erica. If Jacob had been a girl, he would be "Erica" too.

What we hadn't planned for was all the construction outside of Lincoln.  It was ridiculous!  And it put us about an hour behind schedule.  The good news is that we had just stopped for a bathroom break before we hit the construction.  (#869)  You can always find something good in a stressful situation.

We finally made it to the park with Subways for everyone.  Chase is such a cute little guy, and is at such a fun age.  He did his best to make a dent in his 6" Italian BMT from Subway.  But because his bite is more like a nibble, his dad enjoyed the leftovers.  Sweet little Erica slept the whole time in her carseat, which meant I didn't get to hold her this time.  Darn. 

While the adults were visiting, I glanced over and noticed Jenica, Jillian, Chase, & Kaylee sitting on this bench by the lake.  I couldn't resist this sweet picture.  (#870)

It was a HOT weekend for softball, but we endured the heat and Jenica played 3 games Saturday and 2 on Sunday.  Jillian was invited to be the bat girl, and was super-excited at her new role . . . even if it meant she had to wear a hot helmet the whole time.  (#871)

 Notice the smile?

 There it is again . . . still smiling.

Yep . . . still smiling. 

So . . . Did you notice her smile?  It didn't leave her face the entire time she was bat girl.  (#872)  I think she even grew two inches with her new role.  She even followed the girls onto the field at the end of each game, saying "good game" and offering a hand to everyone she passed by.

And when we got back home Sunday evening, tired and somewhat irritable, we found 13 special little pink visitors waiting to welcome us home. (#873)  (There's even one in the tire swing.)  It's the youth group's fund raiser for National Youth Conference, and we get to pay them to remove the pretty pink birds from our yard.  But the best part of the deal (insert evil laugh) is that we get to choose whose yard gets them next.  (#874)

Hmmmmm...... who will it be???  I'd even deliver them myself.  I wonder how long it would take me to get to SLC?  (wink)

Lucky #7

This summer, like most, is full of softball games and baseball games.  And there are a lot of opportunities for sitting in the bleachers.  Jenica is playing . . . Jacob's coaching . . . and my nephews are also playing baseball.  When teams pictures were taken back in May, we realized that Jenica and Hayden were both wearing #7, and we finally got a picture of them together. 

Jenica's softball team has 30+ games on the schedule, plus tournaments two weekends a month through mid-July.   I guess that means we're half-way done.

Softball, however, won't end for us in July.  We'll just get a short break, because Jenica's playing softball in high school starting in August.  That sounds really weird.  Jenica.  High School.  She can't possibly be that old already.  Someone pinch me.

Father's Day

I have the best dad in the whole world.  (Blessing #862)  He is the kind of dad every little girl wants and needs.  He's always been full of encouragement and patience.  And he's shown me what it means to love unconditionally.  Oh, and I get my red hair from him too.  He has guided me, given me advice, and allowed me to spread my wings.  Yet, he's always ready and willing to lend a helping hand at a moment's notice.  I have learned so much from him, and am blessed that God chose him to be my dad.  And my family is truly blessed to call him "grandpa."

My dad with Erin & I (taken last year)

God has also blessed me with a wonderful husband, who is a great father to our children.  (#863)  He loves the Lord, and is creating a lasting legacy for God's Glory. 

Today, we celebrated Chad.  Which, of course, means steaks for lunch (grilled to perfection, courtesy of Jacob).  Oh, and the special blessing at church today is that a former pastor gave the message . . . Neal and Judy Brower were back!  (#864)  It was so great to see them.  I grew so much through Judy's Bible Study several years ago.  What an amazing Christian woman she is! 

Anyway, after lunch we found ourselves sitting in the hot summer sun at Jacob's baseball games.  He played back-to-back games at our Legion field, against two other local teams.  It's such a joy to see Jacob in his role as coach to these young men.  He takes it seriously, but also has a lot of fun.  And the kids love him.  (#865)

Chad & Jacob chat in between games.

The girls had fun too.  They started spitting water at each other, and then Jillian and her little friend Mya snuck up on Jenica and stole her flipflop. 

Chad dropped a hint at the ball games . . . "chocolate chip cookies sound good right now."  So while Chad & Jillian were enjoying the hammock, I whipped up a batch of some good old chocolate chip cookies, which went well with the homemade ice cream we made last week.  (#866) 

Impressive Memorials

This is a long post, so bear with me.  Or just skip over the words and peak at the pictures.

Washington D.C. is only 67 square miles big.  With all the walking we did last week, I'm glad it's not any bigger than that.  The memorials are all quite impressive, and each memorial is unique.  It was a gift just to be able to experience each one of them (Blessing #858), although we could have spent a lot more time at each one.  Next time.

Thomas Jefferson's memorial was built to resemble his home in Monticello and the Pantheon of Rome. The bronze statue of Jefferson, our 3rd president, is 19 feet tall.  The sidewalk goes right up to the edge of the water in the Tidal Basin, and there is NO railing at all to keep people from taking a plunge.  And it's a big dropoff!  As I watched our kids hanging around the edge, I was just waiting for someone to fall in.  Luckily, that didn't happen.  (#859)

The Franklin D Roosevelt Memorial was built over 7 acres of land and consists of 4 different galleries or rooms, which respresents each of his 4 terms as president.  It was made mostly of red granite from South Dakota.  FDR had many famous quotes, which are carved in stone throughout his memorial.  Our tour guide had one of the kids read each quote as we went from place to place along the FDR Memorial. 

The sculpture of Eleanor Roosevelt in room 4 of the FDR Memorial is 1 of only 3 statues of women in D.C.  It's also the only memorial in D.C. where the wife is honored by a sculpture.

The Martin Luther King, Jr Memorial is also impressive.  It's centered around a line from his "I Have A Dream" speech:  "Out of a mountain of despair, a stone of hope."  His statue is 30 feet high, and stands in front of two other pieces of granite that depict the "mountain of despair."  Behind the granite structures is a 450-fteet long inscription wall engraved with many of King's sermons and speeches.

The Lincoln Memorial is one of my favorites.  The statue of our 16th president is 19 feet tall and is made of Georgia white marble.  I love the incredible details on President Lincoln, which took 4 years to complete.  Surrounding Lincoln are 36 columns, representing each of the 36 states in the Union at the time of his death.  Two of his most famous speeches are inscribed on the interior walls. 

While we were exploring at the Lincoln Memorial, a bus load of "Honor Flight" veterans (in white caps and red shirts) were also wondering around.  I happened to glance out past the giant columns and noticed a group of our kids (in blue shirts) visiting with them.  (#860)  Each time I walked past one of these veterans, I told them "thank you for your service," and was surprised at how emotional I became as I pondered the sacrifices each of them made for our country.  For me.  

The Lincoln Memorial was also a perfect place to turn around and let the Washington Monument be the backdrop for a photo with Jenica.  The Washington Monument took over 35 years to build because they had to take a hiatus during the Civil War and wait until they raised enough funds again. 

The Korean Memorial was one of my favorites too.  There are 19 statues, representing the various military divisions as well as the different ethnic groups across America.  They are standing in Juniper bushes, symbolic of the rough terrain encountered in Korea.  Three of the figures are in the trees, and if you are at the flagpole, looking through the troops, you can't tell how many there are, and could be legions emerging from the woods.

The mural wall next to the statues has over 15,000 photographs from the Korean war etched into the black granite.  The reflections of the war statues in the granite make it look like there are 38 soldiers total, symbolic of the 38th parallel and the 38 months of war. 

The Vietnam Memorial was a favorite stop for everyone.  The tour leader from our school, Mrs. Daffer, had a classmate killed in the Vietnam war, and she found his name on the wall and is here pointing it out to everyone.  It made the Wall more personal to us, even if we didn't know her friend.  We noticed loved ones taking etchings of the names on the wall, as well as leaving mementos along the base of the panel with their friend's name.  All of the personal items, photos, and letters left are collected nightly, numbered and marked according to which panel it was left in front of, and stored in a safe place.

The Vietnam Women's Memorial is at the east end of The Wall, and shows 3 women caring for a soldier.  As a mother, I could see how important this sculpture would be for the women who lost their sons in the war.  The nurses were most likely the last person their sons saw or talked to before they died. 

The Iwo Jima Marine Corps Memorial makes me think of Jacob.  He's always dreamed of being a Marine, but his heart condition keeps that dream from becoming a reality.  Some people may think that would be a relief for me.  But actually it makes me sad.  I can see the passion in his eyes when he talks about the Marines and watches movies about them.  I can see the hurt he holds, not being able to go in that direction.  And it makes my heart ache for him and his dream that's not meant to be.  However, I know that God has other plans for him.  And whatever God has planned for Jacob, I know it will be even better than being a Marine would have been for him ,because God can see all of time at one glance, and He knows the exact role Jacob was created for.  (#861)

The 911 Pentagon Memorial really struck the kids on our trip.  They were alive and saw the September 11th tragedy.  They remember exactly where they were the moment the first plane hit the World Trade Center.  This memorial depicts the 184 lives that were lost when American Airlines flight 77 hit the Pentagon.  Each bench depicts a life lost, starting from the youngest person killed to the oldest.  Water lies under each bench, and the name of each person is inscribed on the edge of each bench.  It was pretty impressive and has a lot of symbolism.

The Air Force Memorial honors all of the men and women in the U.S. Air Force.  The design features 3 stainless steal spires that soar skyward over 250 ft. 

The WWII Memorial was a perfect place to sit down and enjoy the beautiful day for a few moments.  This memorial honors the 16 million who served in the armed forces during the war and the 400,000 Americans that died in war.  We walked around and found the "Nebraska" pillar. 

The Einsteen Memorial Sculpture was a fun stop for the kids to get out of the bus and climb on Albert for a picture.

Okay . . . well, there you have it . . . the Memorials we visited while in D.C. in a nutshell.  We did a lot of walking even though our motorcoach dropped us off as close as she could.  The next time I visit D.C., I want to bike it. 

They have a "Capital Bikeshare" program where you join with a debit or credit card, which allows you to wirelessly check out one of their red bikes at any of their 165 locations for as long as you want.  There are bike trails all over the D.C. area.  Sounds like fun to me!!

Making the Most out of a Cancelled Game

Last night, as the storm clouds were building to the south and west, we set out for Jenica's softball game in McCook . . . wondering if we'd get a call saying "games cancelled."  That call didn't come and didn't come, and so we found ourselves arriving in McCook to wait out a "rain delay." 

A friend suggested we skip the usual Mac's Drive-in and try out "Tequila's Mexican Grill" this time.  It was an excellent recommendation!  (Blessing #853) As she promised, the chairs and tables themselves were well worth the trip inside!   Jillian kept touching them.  Anything with texture attracts her little fingers.  When she was little, she would approach anyone wearing clothes with a fuzzy, bumpy, frilly, or unusual texture and touch it. 

Chad & I decided to split an order of steak fajita nachos, and they were A-MA-ZING!  (#854)  The pictures just don't do it justice.  I'll go back and order these again!

Jillian loves tacos but decided that a hot dog sounded better tonight.  Between the cool chairs and her hot dog, it turned her bad mood into a good mood.  (#855)

A while after we got home, the sky turned a vibrant orange.  It was so cool!!  (#856)

The girls & I went outside to look and noticed the rainbow in the sky.  Jenica said, "it's a double!"  You have to look closely, but the faint 2nd rainbow is there.  (#857)

I said, "who wants to jump in the car and drive to the top of the hill with me to get a better look?"  Jenica and Jillian were out the door quickly, and we were on our way.  It was a FULL rainbow, across the whole sky. 

"Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”  Genesis 9:16

The "Old Guard"

Last Wednesday was a special day for our DC tour group, and one that at least four students most likely will never forget.  (#849)  It was the day we toured Arlington National Cemetery and saw the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 

Since April 6, 1948 the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has been guarded 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, regardless of weather.  The guards are "sentinels" from the "Old Guard" at Ft Myers Army Base, and you can read about them here.  They are all volunteers and are the best of the best of the 3rd US Infantry Regiment.

About a month ago, 4 of our students were randomly selected to represent the Holdrege Middle School  by presenting a red, white & blue wreath with our school name on it, to be on display at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers. 

While the rest of our group wore our matching t-shirts, Avery, Quinten, Yvette, and Andrew  got all dressed up and received their instructions for the Wreath Ceremony while the rest of us watched from behind.   After the wreath was presented, Taps was played.  Wow!  What a powerful tribute to our unknown soldiers, and all those who volunteer to stand guard night and day. 

The "Old Guard" is the oldest active-duty infantry unit of the Army, they are the escort for the president, they conduct military ceremonies for visiting dignataries, and they perform an outdoor concert/drill team each week called "Twilight Tattoo."  And we got to attend it!  It was awesome!!   (#850)

    

We saw the Old Guard's Fife and Drum Corps, the Color Guard, the US Army Drill Team, the band "Army Blues" ,and the group "Downrange."  I think we were the first Holdrege group to include this concert in the itinerary, and it was so worth our time!

About half-way through their program, a rainbow appeared right behind the flag pole.  (#851)  That, my friends, is what you call a "kiss from God."  It was a goose-bumps moment. 

Despite the dark clouds, the only time it rained was while we were on the bus, en route to the Military concert.  (#852)  It stopped by the time we got to Ft. Myers Army Base, and the concert adorned with a rainbow high in the sky, was a perfect way to end the day.

Go Big Red!

On our way to the Arlington National Cemetery, we looked out the bus window just in time to spot the Virginia license plate on the car beside us.  Once a Husker, always a Husker. 

It was a sweet taste of home.  (#848)   The traffic in the DC area is multi-lane bumper to bumper on every freeway system, so this was a case of being in the right place at the right time. 

Gift from China

Day 2 of our D.C. trip found us at the National Zoo bright and early last Tuesday morning.  We got to see the pandas!  (#845)  Jillian would have LOVED this part of the tour!! But then again, who doesn't love those adorable pandas with the cute black circles around their eyes?

Mei Xiang (pronounced "may-SHONG") and Tian Tian ("t-YEN t-YEN") are the second set of pandas to live at the zoo.

The first pair (click to read about them) were a gift from China to Washington DC in 1972, following Nixon's visit to China. After they died, the US government reached an agreement with China to allow another set of pandas to reside at the zoo.   All for a low-low cost of only $1 million a year for 10 years, to the China Wildlife Conservation in Beijing.  In the agreement, any offspring must be sent back to China when the panda is 2 years old. 

Mei Xiang and Tian Tian arrived in the US on December 6, 2000, and had only one baby survive, which now lives back in China.

When we arrived at the zoo, the pandas were chomping on some fresh bamboo, looking as adorable as ever.  We walked around the corner to find this cute little Asian Elephant wondering around in his new grassy area.  The National Zoo has 3 of these little guys.

Upon leaving the zoo, we spent a full afternoon touring the historic sites, including an experience taking the subway to our lunch stop.  I was really nervous about losing someone on the Metro, but thankfully, we all got on and off at the right place.  Phew!  Prayers were answered.  (#846)

Jenica and "Q" find an open seat. (Quinten is also on Jake's baseball team.)

After surviving the subway, seeing more memorials, and shopping across from Ford's Theater, we got to spend the evening at the National's Baseball game.  It was nice to sit and relax for a few hours after all the walking we had done. (#847) The down side was that we had to leave before the game was over, which went into 12 innings with (finally) a win over the Mets.

 Our Middle School coordinator took all the group photos with her camera, not realizing that she had a smudge in the middle of her camera lens . . . thus, the blur on each group photo. 

Maddy, Madi, and Jenica

(the girls bought sweatshirts because our mornings and evenings in DC were pretty chilly)


Stay tuned for more D.C. stories.