What a gorgeous summer this has been! I know many of you are suffering from tremendous heat, and that drought is a reality for you - and I merely marvel how all the weather patterns come together and provide different climates for different areas of the country. We have yet to hit 90 (I think it's still last September when it officially happened). We are dry, however, the yard is turning browner, and the dust in the air is getting thicker. We still try to walk every day - and (don't you know) still complain when the temp is over 80 and there's no breeze! Speaking of walking - I'm back to the regimen of the treadmill, and get a good workout every morning before facing the day! Great cardio opportunity! Not a long session - get a mile and a half in twenty minutes and then add a 5 minute cool down. But I'm "re-committed" to the process and haven't missed a day since I began again.
So what's been happening??? So easy to say, "not much", but that wouldn't be true. Have had some great responses to worship opportunities - added the 6:47 service on Thursdays - for folks who can't be with us on the weekend - have had anywhere from 3 to 20 in attendance ... don't know it we'll make it a year round service, yet. It does provide for a need, however. We do it in the sanctuary (which some people really love at that time of day - I start cooling down the room {no AC} about 5 o'clock - with the fans and exhaust fan and it moves from 89 to 84! The building was not well insulated in 1961 when it was built! It certainly holds the summer heat well! Good to have the gathering. Jeff's at Kaleidoscope (youth ministry) tomorrow, so I'll be on my own.
Last SUNDAY's sermon provided another Camp Okoboji reference - as we talked about Retreats. Always brings back fond memories. It's "Two 'R's and an 'M.'" If you wish to listen, enjoy.
So we get this invitation in the mail "LAST NOTICE" - 2 free airline tickets to anywhere in the 48 contiguous states - good for a year on any airline. Obviously I thought it was a gimmick the first times it came - I'm sure I thought, "nothing's free..." Well, this time I read the notice and it said "not selling real estate or time shares or any other things like that..." And after talking to Karina - thinking 2 tickets are 2 tickets - I call back and "make an appointment". Gulp. So last Saturday we meet with "Vacation Inspirations" and hear the spiel - and end up not only impressed with the outfit - but purchase a membership in it!
I'm still excited about it - and can't believe we did it. As we look forward to some kind on retirement, it will provide some great opportunities - but also family vacations where we can get together and learn to know each other better! So hopefully Micah/Carrie and Kristi can be part of our time together as well. Anyway - we did it, and are totally pleased with the service provided! And, because we were the first (in the room of about 10-12 couples) to respond, we have NO annual fees - EVER! How great is that? If you want to know more about the "V-I" - just ask ( or click on the link above); we'd be happy to share what we know!
By the time we got done with our purchase we were hungry! So, since we were close to "The Original Pancake House" - and this literally is the 'original building' (it's not impossible to have a 2 hour wait {they give you a ticket and you can go and shop, then come back, and your place is saved}- it holds about 35-40 people at a time) we decided to stop and have brunch (waited about 5 minutes);
I had an apple pancake, Karina had blueberry pancakes - YUM, YUM!
one apple pancake partially eaten!
check out the blueberries on that cake!
So that made for a pretty terrific day!
Still waiting for the landscaper to come back and finish his work - at least we haven't paid for the stuff he's done - I think he's too embarrassed to bill us - but are enjoying everything that has been completed.
Had company last Monday - Karina's cousin Susie and George came down from the Tacoma area; I BarBQed a pork loin on the grill - as well as veggies and the first sweet corn of the year! Some ears were a little sparse, but tasty none the less!
Had a great evening together! By the way if you spotted the "Grand Marnier" bottle on the table in George's picture, that's the Marionberry liqueur that we processed last summer - it just gets better with age! Only have about 2/3 of a 750ml wine bottle left - better get the 'still' going again!
love ya all.
Karina and Dan
Okay, yah, I listened to the sermon. :) Many weeks the chaplain at CO says the same thing about the place offering a place to retreat....and they seem so very grateful for the opportunity.
ReplyDeleteDohz pancakes look pretty ample and scrumptious. The blueberries were HUGE!
Your holiday house looks like fun for you & your kiddos. Hope you have many happy times utilizing the membership.
You are a walking amazon. 1.5 miles in 20 minutes! That's a pretty incredible pace for a man your age. If I do a mile in 15 minutes, I'm feeling pretty proud. We've had humidity to the ying yang of recent so walking happens early in the AM before the heat of the day arrives. Sometimes it comes early. :(