Six Flags!

On Friday, December 26th, we chose to surprise the boys with a trip to Six Flags - Discovery Kingdom.

We had told them we were going to do something, but did not tell them what, where, when or how until we pulled in the gates. This last fall, Kiley and I had purchased some very discounted tickets at a charity auction we attended for a ministry the church supports, so we figured we would put them to good use.

It was a fairly cool day for Northern California, but at least it was dry. We bundled up and headed in...we didn't leave home until noon and so arrived mid-afternoon, which was just about perfect for us as, none of us are "ride" people except me (Mike), so the day was mainly spent wandering around the animals and the games.

The highlights of the day were according to plan. We saw the Christmas Sea Lion show, the Christmas Dolphin Show and, of course, the Christmas Shouka (the killer whale) show. At the Dolphin show, a vendor came by selling stuffed dolphins with santa hats. I grit my teeth expecting the usual, "dad can we pleeeeasee have one?!" They asked, but politely, and had great attitudes. I wasn't about to spend a ton of money on overpriced stuff animals...wasn't I surprised when she told me the price and it was cheaper than it would have been at Wal-Mart!! Soooo, since they had good attitudes...I chased the vendor down and spoiled my kids (and felt good about it, since it was cheaper than I expected!). It didn't help that Kiley, who normally is the one saying, "that's too expensive..." gave me a look from those big beautiful eyes that said, "I think they deserve it." So much for the cash in my pocket...

My two highlights of the day, were buying hot chocolate and mini-doughnuts and then going on a roller-coaster (despite going by myself). I had to have at least one thrill.

We were home by 8 pm and the boys were worn out. It was another great Christmas memory for us to end a year of a million incredible memories. 

Christmas Morning

There's been much happening around the Skor household since our last blog post. I'll take some time over the Christmas break to update you all on events and memories.

We'll be posting some Christmas pics on Facebook later today or tomorrow as well.

Here's a couple of memories from Christmas Morning:

• Ian opened up an electric toothbrush and yelled, "I've always wanted a 'try me!'" We tried to figure out what he meant and asked. He pointed out the words on the front of the toothbrush...you guessed it, they were "try me!"
• Brendon came dramatically down the stair gasping and fainting repeatedly, which made us wonder what was going on. He came into the family room and declared, dramatically, "I've been shot" -- he had a velcro vest from his Nerf Shooter on and had carefully place 2 dozen Nerf bullet/darts all over the vest as if he'd been shot. Then he repeatedly collapsed on the floor declaring, "I'm dying!"

And the Verdict is...

Well, Brendon didn't win his race for Student Council Treasurer. He was pretty disappointed and hurt. I think what hurt the most was the fact that the boy who won had once claimed to be Brendon's good friend, but who, in the campaign, said and done some pretty mean things.

Brendon's sense of justice kicked in and pointed out that this boy had broken the campaigning rules and, according to those rules, should have been withdrawn from the campaign by the teacher.

To Brendon's credit, his whole class was upset by the results... they wanted him to win. His teacher gave him some space to recover his disappointment (I think she was disappointed too - she likes him a lot). He also was excited for several of his friends who were elected to other posts and congratulated them.

Life lessons are never easy are they?!

We had a "boys movie night" when I got home from work to celebrate how proud we were of Brendon. We watched Return of The Jedi and fought with light-sabers in the living room.

Welcome to politics Brendon...

Election Update

I just got off the phone with Brendon. He gave his speech today in front of all of the second, third, fourth and fifth grade classes at his school.

In his words, "It was weird dad, because I wasn't nervous at all! I didn't mess up at all either! But now, I'm REAL nervous that I might not win."

He finds out the results in the morning.

Brendon for Treasurer

Brendon is running for Treasurer of his school student council. It's been a great learning experience for him. He's justice oriented like his parents and so hearing his classmates promise things that they can't deliver really bugs him. He's convinced that people will vote for him because he doesn't resort to jokes and impossible promises that others have, and whom, he's convinced, can't/won't do the job.

We've had many discussions about doing the right thing, but that the right thing isn't always rewarded by the people around us -- in other words, doing the right thing may not get him voted into office, but that doing the right thing is still always the best path.

This weekend, he worked on his campaign speech. I thought you'd enjoy reading it (note that it has to be two minutes or less). He'll be giving it in front of the entire school. He's justifiably nervous, but he's resolved that this is what he should do.

Speech for Student Council Treasurer By Brendon Skor November 17, 2008 Hi! My name is Brendon Skor and I’m here to tell you why I believe I will be a great Student Council Treasurer and why I believe you should vote for me.
You know those rich people we always see on TV? Who counts their money? Do you know? Well, if they were real, I would count their money.
If you vote for me I will work hard to listen to each person and to represent you well.
I want you to know that you can trust me. I am honest, kind and I really care about doing a good job for our school and you. You can trust me to work hard to keep track of our student council money because I am honest and because I like math (and I think I’m good at it!)
There are a lot of great people who you can vote for Student Council and for treasurer. I ask that you would vote for me, Brendon Skor, for Treasurer because I will help our school become an even better school.
Do you think our school is a great school?! (pause) Do you, I can’t hear you?! (pause)
I do too! I think it’s a GREAT school!
I think we have GREAT teachers!
I think that you, my friends, are the BEST!
And, as Treasurer, I will work hard to make us better!
Remember, when you vote for Treasurer this week. GET MORE AND VOTE FOR BRENDON SKOR!
Thank you.

Great Quote

Heard this quote today from John Piper:

"If America were to dissolve today it would not change God's Sovereignty."

Why I'm celebrating the Day after the Election

Although much of the election results did not go in the direction that our family would have chosen, I do believe that there are many things to celebrate about Election 2008:

• A record turnout at the polls ~ It's been many years since this many people have taken a passionate interest in our government. Any time that there is an increase in people exercising the freedom that we enjoy in this country to vote, it's a good thing.
• An African-American won the highest office in the land ~ Regardless as to whether I support (or agree with) his views or morality, I believe it's an incredible thing for us to finally state as a country that any individual, regardless of ethnicity, can be our President. After decades of, frankly, shameful treatment it is worth a major celebration. Now, though, a new "racism" is rearing it's ugly head and turning back the clock...our country was founded to provide freedom of religion, but we are rapidly trying to turn it into freedom FROM religion.
• A public discussion of values ~ One of the things I value about election times, even though they get ugly, is that these times give me an opportunity to hear and to talk about the values that individuals hold dear. It is one of the few times these days that Biblical values are allowed to be discussed in the public forum. It is also a fantastic time for me to hear what my neighbors, friends, and country values so that I know how to pray for them and to give direction to the church in the coming days so as to help those around discover the values that really matter.
• We get to experience History ~ All too often I think we take it for granted in our country as to how unique we are in world history. We are a relatively young nation who have experienced the entirety of our history in a grand experiment called democracy. Few other countries have survived the experiment. We often, even in modern history, balance on the edge of failure when it comes to democracy. I don't want to miss the realization that we are living in history-making moments akin to those grand moments we studied in our textbooks.
• We are living in Spiritually Hungry Times ~ I believe that Americans have looked around and have found too few things to satisfy their souls. I believe that now is a crucial time for the church to step out of the clouds of condescension and condemnation and to BE the church. Even though people want the government to save them, no one trusts those IN government -- what a time for the church to resume her post as the people who serve the needy, the hopeless, the lost and the hurting. What a time to talk about the things that really matter.
• Cynicism against the government reminds us that only changed hearts change culture ~ We as Christians and non-Christians have looked for far too long to our government to declare morality for our nation. This election should scream loudly a reminder that it is only in the teaching of and the trust in a personal Jesus that we find true morality. I may scream against the moral crime of abortion, but until Jesus is allowed to turn selfishness into self-sacrifice in a young mom's heart she will continue to cry for her personal choice over that of an unborn child. I can't change a heart. A law can't change a heart. God changes hearts, and Him alone. What an opportunity for the church to rise up in loving declaration and reveal the God who is in the business of changing people from the inside out.

No, every issue in the election did not go the way I would have liked it to go...but I serve a God who is still on the throne and who orchestrates the twists and turns of nations to ultimately bring glory to Him and to usher in a Kingdom the likes of which the world has never seen!

Crumpled Paper and Carving Pumpkins

This last Friday Kiley and I were picking up kids from school. We had picked up Ian and were hanging around visiting with parents while we waited for Brendon's class to let out.

Ian was playing with one of his classmates and I noticed him pull a crumpled up piece of paper out of his pocket and hand it to his friend. They talked about it excitedly for a moment and then his friend ran the paper over to his mom, with whom Kiley was visiting.

The mom opened the crumpled paper and I noticed it was an invitation to our Pumpkin Carving Sunday in a couple weeks. I cringed at the crumpled paper and was about ready to try and apologize for my son keeping it wadded up in his pocket all day, when the mom ready it and looked up at Kiley and said, "Can we come to this?" (What were going to say to that?!)

She went on to unpack her story for us. She shared with us some of her background, upbringing and religion and then said, "My husband and I have been thinking about helping our kids find some direction and we'd like to try your church. We see your church everywhere in our community and want to try it." She had some other questions about what to expect, and then committed to coming to try it out for her family.

I was convicted. We have known this family for several years and slowly built a relationship with them.

But my five-year-old son, with the bold innocence that only a child has, made a simple ask of a friend and it may very well make an eternal difference.

I'm proud of him.

It was later that his teacher (who happens to be a friend) told us how Ian was running around to everyone on the playground and inviting them. When they would turn him down, there was no discouragement, he simply went on to ask the next person.

Oh to have the faith of a child....

Jesus Moments

So, I've been attempting to use car rides to school for some teaching moments.

My latest endeavor has been to challenge the boys on the way to school to think about one thing they can do that day that Jesus would want them to do. I promise to ask them after school.

So, on the first day we were sitting around the supper table together and I asked the question, "What did you do today that you think Jesus wanted you to do?"

Brendon -- "I invited a friend to go to AWANA because I thought it might be good for him and he might enjoy it..." and then, a little quieter, "...and I get points when he comes."

Ok, he's close, but the motivation needs some help. :-)

Ian -- (said without any hesitation or thought) "I went to the library!"

"You think going to the library was what Jesus wanted you to do today?"

"Yep."

"Why?"

"Because I got a book called 'Backyard Detective' that teaches me about the stuff in my backyard that God made."

Hmmm...his associative skills astound me, but I probably have some more work to do as we drive in the mornings.

Slash?

It seems like all my current family stories are about Ian and a bathroom. I guess that's just the season of life for the Skor Family these days.

Last night, Ian was taking a bath and stepped out to go to the bathroom.

I was in talking to Brendon when I heard the Ian "bathroom yell" but this time it was different. When I heard it, I looked into the hall and locked eyes with Kiley as if to ask, "Did I just hear what I thought I heard?" She nodded her head...we both promptly about fell over laughing at our child.

So what did he yell? I'll tell you in a minute...but let me ask you, after I tell you, answer this question for me...where did he learn THIS?

Here's what he yelled (I'm typing it word for word as he said it):

"I'm done going potty slash taking a bath!"

Slash?

What's he learning in Kindergarten these days?

Laughing at my children

Tonight both boys made me laugh:

• Brendon learned that he can't winner in a towel-snapping duel with his dad. No welts, bruises or broken skin...but when dad has a wet towel in his hand...Brendon has a newly-found respect!
• Ian was showing me his "aquarium display" in his room. Many of his animals set up in various displays which he talked me through. As I saw what looked like a T-rex with a lizard in his mouth he said, "This dinosaur likes to try and eat this lizard but he's too squishy to be eaten."

Growing up

As I was praying with the boys on our way to school this morning, I was a little overwhelmed by how they are becoming young men already.

Brendon and I are interacting at a different level than ever before. We're having more "grown up" conversations about life. His sense of humor jumps back and forth between elementary boy "body" humor and more sophisticated teasing and thoughts. Often, we'll sit in my big chair on lay on his bed at night and just talk. If I close my eyes, it's sometimes easy to forget that he's only nine. Of course, then he tackles me in the hall and makes some sci-fi sound effect and his age comes rushing back. :-)

Ian is feeling the pain of his pre-school childhood slipping away. He absolutely LOVES school, but daily reminds us how he misses just playing with his toys. He's moved from toddler to elementary boy. His art teacher caught me this morning to tell me how impressed she is with his maturity. She said, the normal kindergartners take several months to learn to pay attention and manage themselves, but he has been instantly attentive and produces great art already. Guess he is brighter than the average boy...ha!

I love these two dearly. And I pray daily that they would thoroughly enjoy their childhood...that it would be filled with life-long warm memories. I also look forward to watching them grow-up, however quickly that may be, and pray that they mature into passionate followers of the God who died for them.

Warning - Gross boy content

I apologize for the rather gross content of this post, but it made us laugh so hard, we just HAD to record it.

Ian and Brendon spent the night with my mom (Esther) recently. While there, Ian had the urge to go to the bathroom. After a little while, the expected yell came from the bathroom, "Done going pooooottttyyy!" (A little background...Ian has not yet learned how to wipe himself. When he yells, "Done going potty!" he means, "come and clean me up please!").

My mom went in and proceeded to wipe Ian's little bottom. She did it just once and declared he was ready.

Ian looked at her questioningly, "Are you sure I'm clean?"
Mom responded, "Yes, you are."
"But it was only once."
"I know, but you're clean, you can pull your pants up."

She began to help him pull his pants up when she heard, "Yep, you're right, I'm clean!"

She looked up to see Ian holding his finger in front of his face...examining it for any signn of "uncleanness."

We'll leave the rest to your imagination.

That's our boy...

Interesting

Life is interesting...I mean REALLY interesting. Nothing has quite been what I thought it might be and just when I think I've got a good system going, we enter a new phase with new rules and it all starts over. Not that I'm complaining...okay, I'm complaining, but not in an intense, whiny way :). I get bored easily and it keeps things, well, interesting. Now if I can just learn to enjoy change...

Some recent interesting things that are happening:
-Both boys are in school 6 hours a day which means I have more uninterrupted time to work on things
-Ironically, people I've tried to set up play dates with for the past couple of years are all of the sudden free, so I'm spending more time with people.
-Though some rather bizzare circumstances, I find myself co-leading worship for this year's northern zone ladies' retreat. It's rather last minute since it starts in about a month, so we've been scrambling to get stuff set.
-Recently, I agreed to work with vocals for The River Church, which means I'm running partial rehearsals (which I haven't done since Ian was about a year old) again and directing the choir when we have special services where we use a choir. This is what my college training was about, so it's nice to dust it off and use it again, though I find I've let myself grow a bit rusty in a few areas, which leads me to the next thing to incorporate in my days...
-I've realized it's been a while since I've had an intentional system for exercising and strengthening my voice. I've recently started practicing my vocal exercises again and look forward to gaining some of the flexibility I feel I've lost.
-I'm continuing my daily exercise routine, which is quite invigorating, but takes time.
-In the meantime, I need to make sure I get the boys' Halloween costumes made. This year there are three to make since I offered to make one for my nephew too. He saw the ones I made for e-bay last year and my sister said he was so impressed and really wanted one. I was wishing I had known so I could have done one for him last year, but determined to make one this year.

So...my October is pretty well booked up. I'm wondering what the Christmas holidays will bring...

Honesty

One of the things I've noticed among different leaders lately is a sort of passive less-than-honest manipulation.

Sometimes I've been guilty of it.

We see an individual and assess their gifts, talents, skills, etc and "place" them in our mind. Or, we watch them in action and determine that he/she needs to be "placed" differently than they are.

But, instead of talking about it openly, or, perhaps investing in them to grow them into where we thought they don't fit, we begin to offer passive suggestions and comments. We slowly push them where WE think they should be.

I've done this, and am not proud of it. 

The more I understand my role as a leader in the church (which is another discussion altogether - the current view of what leadership is and isn't), the more I realize that my primary job is listening for the direction of the Holy Spirit and then, openly and honestly, acting on His direction.

Is subtlety sometimes necessary? Yes, but only at His direction. We are to apt to be manipulative and I've rarely, if ever, seen that work.

Kind Affirmations

I've felt the Holy Spirit stirring some fresh winds and directions in my soul for some time now. At times they've left me a little confused and, frankly, nervous about what He's doing in me and what He wants to do through our family.

In the last week He has graciously allowed me to receive some affirmations. Affirmation is always good for the soul, but they are also dangerous. I've watched far too many people receive affirmation and suddenly they are making decisions and heading in directions due to an inflated ego that they should not go. I've watched people hear someone say about them, "I think you could be ____________ someday (you fill in the blank" and then, due to that affirmation, they began to subtly offer suggestions and manipulations to worm their way to that position.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that work hard and promoting oneself is a bad thing if it's done with humility and grace. But, I think sometimes that we are too full of ourselves and not full enough of faith in a God who has a future in mind for us. I wonder how often we miss that mark when we're looking to fulfill man's prophecies instead of God's purposes.

As I've received and heard these kind words about my service on the DBMD, teaching with the Spiritual Formation Department, teaching in our local church, and some people's "hints" for what they think might be a possible future for me, for the first time in my life, I can honestly say that these kinds of statements scare me more than they encourage me. Do they make me feel good? Yes, and they should. But, I don't know what the Holy Spirit has in store for me. What I DO know is that my future is His job and not mine. 

My job is to be faithful in the here and now. 

My job is to listen for His voice and act on it.

My job is to fulfill the purposes and calling currently on my life.

My job is to guard my heart from influences apart from Him.

Who knows what He's forming in me?

Who know if the kind words people have said are true? People are fickle.

But I do know, that He is a faithful God who loves to do things with His kids that they can't ask or imagine.

Field Trip

Ian went on his first field trip this week with his kindergarten class. He was pretty excited about it for a few days before and has been since.

They went to the "B" Street Theater downtown Sacramento. My description of the place is that it's "live PBS." Not sure how they make any money. They're probably government supported with an arts grant or something. It's off in a little corner of downtown in kind of a warehouse.

They did a production for the kids called "Go Dog Go!" based on the popular kids' book by that title. It was cute and they did a very good job.

I took the morning off of work and Kiley and I met the bus at the theater (they only allow three parents to ride the bus at a time and there is such a clamor for parents to ride that they do a kind of lottery). 

As we sat in the theater during the intermission with Ian, I asked him what his favorite part of the field trip was. I expected to have him talk about the play. Instead, as usual, he surprised me.

"Dad, we rode on a big bus! There were three of us in a seat and we bounced and we had our own window, but only the top of it goes up and down...and it was SO much fun."

Guess we know what the fun parts of a field trip are now...

A new Season

As fall begins this week, I've been reflecting on the fact that the Skor family has entered a new season of life. I think it's taken Kiley and I a few weeks for this to begin to seep into our consciousness, but we're beginning to realize that we need to make some adjustments in our thinking and family habits to fully "lean in" to this new season of life and grace for our family.

Here are some of the things that are new to us as fall begins:

• For the first time, both boys are in school all day long. This affects Kiley's schedule as well as my Fridays off of work.
• Kiley has accepted the volunteer job as vocal coach for our worship team. She's more than prepared for this, but it takes dozens of hours and energy which was poured into the family.
• We've both realized that we're no longer part of the "young" crowd anymore. Maybe we haven't been for a while and were in denial, but now, we're among those who have experienced life and people look to us as such.
• Our Pastoral staff has expanded. It takes more time and interaction each day to keep on top of everything.
• Our extended family is changing, both with age and with their seasons of life.

Future jobs

I forgot to add another fun moment today on our way back from school. Ian was talking about what he wants to be when he grows up. He said, "I've decided what I'm going to do. When I grow up, I'll be a scientist at the time when I have classes right now, then when I'm not doing that, I'll be a secret agent. I can use the days I normally have PE and Spanish to be a singer and then I'll be an animal doctor on the weekends." I can't wait to see his time management skills :).

Tough Love

So I had an "Ian" moment putting him to bed tonight. He wanted to sleep on his fuzzy decorative fake fur pillow. Since it's not really washable, I told him we would put it next to him instead of sleeping on it. Of course, he had to ask why he couldn't sleep on it. When I explained that we drool in our sleep and I didn't want a bunch of drool on it, he told me HE doesn't drool when he sleeps. I said maybe he's right (I don't really remember finding a bunch of drool spots on his big pillow), but his daddy and I both drool really bad and it might be in the genes. He thought on this for a bit and then gave me his parting words for the night..."I love you anyway, even though you drool." Isn't that what real love is about?

How do people do it?

I've thought a lot about this, this summer. How do we, as human beings, live with ourselves? :-)

We say we believe in and value something and then we ACT in direct contradiction to that fact. It's not just believing in God and then acting as if we don't...that's a pretty big thing and it confuses me every time. It's also small things. Things like, "I think that being healthy is important" and then we eat chocolate chip cookies until we're sick. Or a boss who says, "As a company, we value (you fill in the blank)" and then, when a staff member begins to act as if he/she values that, the boss expresses disappointment.

I'm thankful for a God who understands that people are trapped in sin and is quick to forgive and help. I'm not so patient with people, or even myself, for that matter...but He is.

Say what?

We had lunch at "The Club" after church this morning (aka Sam's club).

While there I noticed that, in the seasonal section, they were putting CHRISTMAS stuff out!

Now, I like Christmas more than most people, and will often listen to Christmas music throughout the year...but to have Christmas decorations out in September?!!?!

That's just ridiculous...

Goodbye...

Well, last night the boys and I made the trek over to my folks' house to say goodbye to a friend.

Just over a week and a half ago, we listed our camper on Craigslist. There was a lot of interest which, we knew, meant that it would soon sell. It seemed like everyday last week and even over the holiday weekend, we were trekking over to mom and dads to set up the trailer for another potential buyer (why couldn't they have gotten together and come together so we only had to set it up once? - ha!).

The first time Kiley and I set it up, some cotton fell out of the seems from the cotton trees at the campground we loved in Buffalo, WA. Sand poured out from the beaches of Oregon. We could smell the salty beach air mixed with the fresh scent of Redwood trees. It was a little overwhelming as the memories flooded back so fresh and I had to stop for a moment and, again, thank my heavenly Father for so many incredible moments with my family.

Finally, on Saturday, a couple came and offered us full price. At the time, I had two other families who were rushing over wanting to buy it as well.

So last night they came and picked up their new camper that I pray will be full of blessings and memories for their family. The boys and I stood and watched it leave, probably not as sad as we expected to be, but still somewhat sentimental.

It does help that we sold it for several hundred dollars than we paid for it. :-)

Typical Ian

Ian woke up and crawled in our bed over the weekend. He gave Kiley a huge hug and proceeded to crawl out and go on with whatever he wanted to do.

Feeling slighted, I said, "Hey! What about Dad?! Don't I get hugs and kisses too?"

He sighed...then gave me a quick hug and kiss and I whispered in his ear, "I love you!"

He grinned, jumped off the bed and said, "OK"

Children

I remember being very concerned as a teenager that I would have children and then discover I didn't really like them (I always loved babies, but could take or leave toddlers and older), then I had my own children. I know it's trite, but nothing could have prepared me for how much I love my boys. With my own children, the baby stage was fun, but the real fun times started during the toddler years. I realize I'm barely out of that stage with Ian and, granted, Brendon is in a bit of an obnoxious stage at the moment with his new found hypochondria, but if the next 10 to 15 years are as joyous (and frustrating...oddly enough the frustrations are almost as wonderful as the fun stuff) as the past 9 have been, I will be a happy woman indeed. These musings are brought on by a couple of quotes (or "Ian"isms as they have come to be known as in our house) from Ian this weekend. The first happened yesterday as he and Brendon were talking about where they want to live in the future and what they want to do. They've both decided to be scientists when they grow up and lately Brendon has decided he wants to live in Alaska. When Michael and I pointed out there aren't many scientists in Alaska, so it could be challenging to find a job there, the boys quickly changed their minds and said they would just live in Nebraska instead. Michael and I snorted and said it would probably be easier to find a job as a scientist in Alaska than in Nebraska. Ian immediately and excitedly said, "Yay, we get to be the first scientists to live in Nebraska!" You've got to love a positive attitude like that. The other quote came from "Miss Melinda" who teaches Ian's class in church. They were talking about how you can tell where people are from by the words they use, such as "pop" or "soda," etc. Ian piped up asking, "Where am I from?" Melinda said, "Ian, you're a Californian." He responded, "Oh goody, and I didn't even have to move here from anywhere!" Have I mentioned how much I love my children?

Kindergarten

I was struck this morning by the huge difference between sending your first child to Kindergarten and sending your baby to Kindergarten. When Brendon went to Kindergarten, I saw most of the special morning's activities via a video camera screen. Ian was 17 months old and woke up that morning in a fierce mood. I don't know if he picked up on my emotions or what, but when we got to Brendon's new classroom, he was insistent on wanting to play where he shouldn't and/or screaming his head off. In desperation, I finally took him outside so he wouldn't ruin the morning for the 19 other sets of parents who were trying to soak in their children's first day at school. I remember walking around the courtyard at Natomas Park Elementary with tears streaming down my face (partly from sadness at having my first in school, partly from anger at missing all the special rituals set up to ease the mothers' reticence). Apart from the emotion of the morning, I remember Brendon had all new clothes, his hair was gelled and perfect and we had pictures and video from the moment he woke up. 

Wednesday was Ian's first day at Kindergarten and I was able to soak in every moment of the morning. We DO have video and pictures from most of the morning, thanks to Michael who always thinks about those things. He DID have a new shirt and though the shorts weren't new, I purposely picked out a pair that weren't faded or worn. His hair was gelled and combed and we DID actually arrive early. The differences show up in other small ways. After drop off, Michael and I were able to stop for a quick jamba juice sans kids and later though we were on time to pick Ian up, we weren't standing around early waiting for a first glimpse at the Kindergarteners as they came out (like many other first time moms). I didn't cry, not even once, over him going to school. I think it affected me more from the standpoint I know this is my last and now I have no more pre-school children (I really enjoyed my pre-schoolers), but I was able to focus on Ian and engage in the morning. It's very therapeutic to focus on the moment with your full mental capacities.

The real test of first versus second child came this morning. I spent Brendon's first full week at Westlake Charter School tearing tags off of shorts and shirts before he got dressed for the day. This morning (third day of school) Ian was getting ready to head out when I heard Michael say, "Ian, have your mom get a different shirt. This one has a big hole in the shoulder." From what I hear, the third child goes to school with the hole in the shoulder. The fourth and subsequent children may or may not be wearing a shirt by the third day at school. 

First Day Quotes

Some quotes from the 1st Day of School:

Ian - "I have the perfect Kindergarten underwear..."

Brendon - "I LOVE Mrs. Lillich. She's the greatest teacher EVER!"

Ian - "You know that thing that looks like a bridge on the playground? It's got holes in it, and when you walk across it, you have to be careful, cause if you fall it might damage you..."

Brendon - "In our class we're going to do lots of new things. It's going to be the best year EVER!"

Ian - "I met a lot of my friends today that didn't know me before."

A Big Day

In just about 90 minutes we head out the door for the first day of school.

It's a very sentimental season for me.

Brendon begins 4th grade. Fourth grade was the year that my family moved from Minnesota to Montana. It was also the year that marked the beginning of major movements of the Holy Spirit in my life. It was when my personality really began to change, when I was more aware of my choices and friends. I'm proud of Brendon. He's a young man who is going to do well. We met his art teacher last night who made a big deal out of his skill and ability. She intends to pour into him this year in a huge way.

Ian begins Kindergarten. Out youngest, in a sense, officially begins the journey away from home. It's been real hard on Kiley, especially with our plans to have more children being changed by the emergency surgery a couple of years ago. He's her cuddly one. Ian will do exceedingly well. He already has influence and loves to learn.

I'll post pictures and maybe video later.

A Festival?

Ian woke up earlier than usual this morning and marched into our room and announced in his best public speaker's voice, "The family festival will begin as soon as everyone is out of bed." We weren't sure what this meant, but, come to find out, he had worked hard, with Brendon's help, the day before to sort all of their stuffed animals into categories and placed them in their rooms in imaginary cages for a zoo.

Kiley enjoyed her festival that morning, but I, unfortunately, had to go to work. I came home for lunch, so they took me immediately upstairs for my private screening of the festival. They had all kinds of performances from different "trained" animals from various parts of the world. They even performed some magic tricks as animals disappeared in front of us. Ian's knowledge of animals continues to astound me.

Tonight, we visited their school for "meet the teacher" night in preparation for school beginning in the morning.

Ian made himself right at home in Mrs. Stevenson's classroom. He's so excited about school that he can hardly contain himself. As other students and their families would come in, he would walk up to the student, grin, and say "hi" and then just stand there. They'd look at him like, "whose the weirdo?" I know he'll do well. He's always the popular one amongst his friends and with his teachers.

Brendon's new teacher is Mrs. Lillich. She has two sets of twins, one set in Kindergarten with Ian and another in 5th grade. She's a believer and has a strong goal of helping her 4th graders learn independent motivational skills this year. I think she's the perfect teacher for Brendon. I'm thrilled so far with how God placed the right teachers in the right place for our boys.

After that, I took the family home. I gave Kiley the choice, for her birthday, as to whether she wanted to put the boys to bed or attend the mandatory parent meeting at the school. She chose putting the boys to bed, so guess where I spent my evening?

Birthday

Tomorrow is Kiley's Birthday! Since Tuesday is going to be a full day, we had a little celebration tonight.

She chose In/Out as her fancy restaurant for a family dinner and then we went home to open her presents. The boys each got her a card and gave her one of the gifts we had chosen.

Ian gave her scrap booking supplies to help with doing the Sabbatical pictures.

Brendon gave her Pride and Prejudice on DVD.

I gave her gift cards to two of her favorite places to shop.

She said it was one of her best birthdays yet. Which was funny to me as I felt like I hadn't had much time to do much for her this year.

She's an amazing mom and my best friend. I'm blessed to spend my life with her.

Back in Action

Well, today the Skor family was back in force and engaged in Sunday morning at The River Church.

Kiley enjoyed what had to be one of the best bands we've put on stage to date. She loved every moment of being back on the stage after over 8 weeks. Other than forgetting her headphones and music (she called me at the office and I ran home to get them), she was her usual incredible self on stage.

I was back on stage to do communion. So it was a short, 9 minute, mini-sermon. I love to teach and communicate...not for anything is does to me, but because I know when I'm in that mode, that I'm right where I was designed to be. I may never be the world's greatest teacher, but as long as I'm where my Father wants me...that's all that matters.

She said "yes!"

14 years ago today at a picnic dinner by a river, I asked her...and she said yes...I'm still in awe...

Next to Jesus, she's the best thing that's ever happened to me.

When she walks into the room, she still makes my heart go into over drive...

I need to change what?

So, Kiley called me to tell me about Ian this morning...

She asked him to go and change out of his Pajamas and into clothes for today. He came down a few minutes later with yesterday's clothes on. When Kiley asked him why he had the same clothes on he said, "But I changed my underwear!"

Normal?

I had someone ask me this week, "So...are you ready to get back to normal life?"

The question, surprisingly, caught me a little off guard. It has made me stop and think.

What IS normal?

I know, maybe it sounds silly. I don't want to get into wild theories and metaphysics, but it is a valid question I think. In so many parts of life people have accepted that ABnormal for the normal. Marriage, for example, is accepted to have the "goal of permanency" but with an escape clause called divorce that's not fun, but OK for anyone to use if you aren't "compatible." Obviously, that's not God's definition of normalcy. Sexuality has certain "normal" patterns in culture, but God's pattern is entirely different. I could go on, but the point is that there are many places in which the world around us has conformed to a pattern that is not of God and has called it normal. In many cases, followers of Christ have put on the brakes and said, "Whoa...that's NOT normal. Don't conform to that pattern." But not in all cases have we done so...

And so it begs the question when it comes to patterns of work, play, family, priority, etc. "What is normal?"

Industrial society has set up patterns that have changed the application of the Christian work ethic. The hours, demands, and normal patterns for work in modern industrial society in the name of a good work ethic, have, in many cases, created a pattern that in pre-industry were only seen in three areas: slavery, conscripted military and brothels.

Daniel Spaite, in his book Time Bomb in the Church talks about the patterns that we have come to accept as normal and their effects on our bodies. He says that there are chemicals which are released when we experience certain events and circumstances to help our bodies handle the moment well. The problem comes in when the pattern of our life moves us from one of these events to another for an extended period of time. Our bodies begin to accept the presence of these chemicals as normal, when they should be abnormal. I understand this a little experientially right now. Like coming off of an extended fast, my body is moving back into the patterns of daily life, and it's reintroducing some of those chemicals it needs to adjust to these patterns.

I have a ton of questions about this subject. I'm far from proclaiming that "I have discovered the pattern for normal." What I do know, is that many of the patterns we have conformed to as normal are not, but what patterns ARE normal and how do we put ourselves in a place where we can be transformed to them?

What God has Taught me

I've had several ask me what God has taught me over the course of our sabbatical. I'm not prepared to share it all, as I'm still trying to learn it, I'll tell you if I have six months from now. Three things, though, come to mind as being significant lessons for me:

1. Rest ~ God made the Sabbath for man, not man for the Sabbath. He created Sabbath patterns and seasons. These were not designed to be super spiritual learning times, but times of rest. Don't overspiritualize these times, but don't miss their vital importance FOR our spiritual well-being. When the Sabbath was instituted, man's daily life was filled with the chores of life. Now, we seem to save all of the "non-work" (personal) related chores for our day off and so we never do rest.
2. God's Ministers/Pastors SHOULD be the most healthy people on the planet and yet they are among the most UNhealthy. We have God's Truth. We have God's pattern for life. And yet, somehow we think that we can be disobedient and live "above" this because we are called to be ministers. This isn't just physical health, but emotional, relational, patterns of work, drivenness, etc.
3. I am PART of God's plan (and that's vital) I am not ALL of God's plan ~ God often works in generations to accomplish His work. I so often get trapped into thinking that He's going to accomplish it all in my lifetime. This doesn't mean that I don't work hard, but it does mean that the "production" is up to Him and His timing and not me.
   

Headed to the Office

I'm headed back into the office for the first time in over seven weeks this morning. some have asked if I'm ready for it. The short answer is "no" ;-). Others have asked if I'm despressed that our time is over. The answer to that is no as well. The only experience that lasts forever will be when we finally are home with our Heavenly Father.

Until that time I am reminded of C.S. Lewis' teaching on how so often we overindulge ourselves with a good thing. I don't have the exact quote in front of me, but, bottom line, he says, "There comes a point when even a good thing, the best of things, becomes a not so good thing. The flavor begins to fade due to familiarity. The joy is not as much. God made us, in this life, to experience life with limits, but in heaven...there will be no end to increasing joy."

The Devourer

We've been home for just about 24 hours and already there have been moments when it is tempting to forget the joy and blessing of the last weeks and focus on the moment.

The Bible calls both Satan and sin by the name of "the one who devours"...the reality is we live in a world that is decaying due to sin even as Satan attempts to devour the good that is beyond the reach of decay. Ok, that was my moment of theology... :-)

Already, we've been faced with a car that is missing horribly, a dryer that is dying rapidly, and several other items such as a broken paper shredder that aren't a big deal unless combined with the annoyances of the bigger things.

I'm rarely one to give satan credit for everything bad that happens (and won't give him credit for these mechanical pains in the butt), but he and his cronies definitely exploit opportunities like this to devour joy, memories of blessing, celebrations of God's amazing faithfulness, and every other good and perfect gift that have come from above. Mark (in chapter 4) shares Jesus' parable of how the enemy swoops in to steal seeds of God's Word spoken to us if we aren't careful to make sure our hearts stay cultivated and tender to His voice.

I fully expect other events, people, and moments to give me "opportunity" to harden my heart and allow my joy and the depth of what He has spoken to me recently to be stolen away. I am determined to stay focussed on my Provider...whether it's dryers, cars, electronics or people, I know that they are ultimately His and He will take care of each in an amazingly faithful manner. (Jere. 29:11, Malachi 10:11-12)

The most difficult challenge, and I hesitate to write this, will be people I think. Well meaning people who will want me to know all the things that have gone wrong while we were gone. Well meaning people who may be subconsciously (or consciously) bothered by us being gone for so long and they were not.

My prayer this week, based on Psalm 103, is that we would be a means of bringing joy, health, and freshness instead of the reverse.

Our last Evening

We spent our last evening officially on Sabbatical with our family and "extended" family, at least those who could attend around my folk's pool. It was a little too cold for the adults to dive in, but the rest of us gathered around the firepit and just enjoyed being together.

If there's one thing that I know has re-centered itself in my heart this summer it's that it really is all about relationships. Heard that somewhere before I know....

Arriving Home

I'm sure I'll have several post-dated posts of which this is the first. We arrived back at the house on Sunday night to rest and relax around home. We're trying to "fly low" under the radar so as not to re-engage quite yet. We have some local trips planned yet this week.

Ian was thrilled to be home...he's our home boy.

Brendon was in tears...he wanted to head out and keep traveling. "It's just not right that we have to be home!" He sniffed through tears.

We'll unload the camper and truck tomorrow and park it back at my folks' house for now.

Pool & Zoo

Spent some time yesterday at one of Ian's favorite places...the zoo!

Once done, we headed for a pool to cool down, and then had a special treat (have only had it once all summer, I was in withdrawals) pizza!

The verdict is almost in

We still have a couple days of gas, food, etc. but, as I crunched the numbers today, it looks like our 7 weeks cost less than 7 days of Disneyworld (and we do Disneyworld for a fraction of what most people do)!! And, as much as I hate to admit it because I love Disney, the memories from this trip are far more varied and far deeper than a Disney trip. Of course, I'll still do Disney any day. :-)

So, were we cheap? No, we never had the feeling that we were denying ourselves at all.

So, how do you do a seven week time away with a family of four and not break the bank? Here's a few of the principles that guided us:

• Camp - I know, for many this doesn't sound like fun, but with a good camper and the right equipment, this is more fun than spending thousands on hotels. Most modern campgrounds have all the same facilities as a hotel, plus you get the same bed every night (we put a memory foam topper on ours -- VERY comfortable).
  
• Bring your own food - this saved us, we figured, a couple thousand at the most, and several hundred dollars at the least. We rarely felt like we were trapped cooking all the time. Plus, it made eating out a special treat.
• Spend time with people you enjoy - we joked about "mooching" off of relatives, but we still purchased groceries, gave thank you gifts, etc. and we both enjoyed time together in a way that is a rarity.
• Stay away from shopping centers, malls and souvenir shops -- this isn't a bad rule when you're home. Don't go where it's tempting to spend money, instead, spend time at places that are fun, promote activity, and don't cost an arm and a leg. This doesn't mean we didn't go shopping and buy fun stuff. We did. In fact, about once a week, we'd go shopping and each boy would get some kind of treat or toy. When you allow yourself to go more often though, your costs skyrocket.
  
• Do your research - When we went searching for a place to stay at the last minute, it always bit us...both in cost and in quality. When we spent time finding places to stay and activities to do ahead of time we always came away having spent less and having found places where the quality was far better than others.
  

Exfoliating Shower Gel?

I've put off commenting on this for a while, but the time has come...Kiley purchased shower gel for us to use when we camped, so we didn't have to mess with the bar of soap getting all messy, etc. What she missed was the fact that this shower gel was exfoliating...

All I'm going to say is, exfoliating shower gel is not meant to be used on certain parts of the body....

I went to Wal-Mart and bought different shower gel.

Fireside Theology

One of the many places that the Holy Spirit has been renewing my heart and speaking to my soul has been sitting beside the fire. Which is what I’m doing right now…21st century though, journaling with my laptop. I’m sure the smoke can’t be good for the laptop. ☺

He’s used these times to renew my theology. As odd as that may sound, I think we all need to have our theology “renewed” from time to time. Each of us needs to reaffirm, in the far corners of our hearts and the deep crevices of our spirits, what we believe about who God is, how He is using us, what He’s doing with this world, why I really need Him, how He works inside of us, and what our responsibilities are.

This needs to be done separately from listening to great speakers, going to conferences, or in the busyness of life. This is done only, I believe, in reflection, with some space, with the volume turned down and our spiritual hearing turned up.

What has He renewed in my theology? I’m not ready to disclose it all outside of my journal. And some of it makes sense only in my thinking. But here are a few things, in my usual listing style:
• God is good, all the time. No matter what happens. No matter what doesn’t happen. He is good. Period.
• Scripture needs to be part of the constant thoughts of a believer. It’s the Word of their Master, Savior, friend, Father, Creator and Counselor. Why shouldn’t it be?
• The Church’s job is to introduce those within her influence to Christ and to grow them up IN Christ. Don’t get distracted by cool, big, egos, personal wants, or anything else.
• God has gifted each person for a specific place of service in the local Church. Scripture lifts no gifts significantly above others as being more important (if any, Paul says, “desire prophecy”). The church rises and falls on all of us using our gifts the way He intended.
• God wants to talk to us moment by moment. Be Quiet. We live with too much noise and at too high of a speed. We don’t have time to listen to Him.

Audio Books

One of the cool things we've done as we've travelled is listen to audio books and radio Theater. So far, we've listened to a bunch:

• The entire 7 book series of Chronicles of Narnia (This was a radio theater and done VERY WELL)
• James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
  
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
• The Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
• Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary
• The Hobbit (unabridged and Radio Theater -- VERY good) by Jrr Tolkien
• The Emporer's New Clothes (Radio theater with an all star cast -- narrated by Jay Leno - very funny)
  
• The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl
• The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl

Happy Birthday Cynthia!

Almost forgot...tomorrow is my sisters' birthday!

Happy Birthday Cynthia...we won't mention how old you're getting 'cause I'm a few years ahead of you. :-)

Driving the Coast

Drove more of the California coast today. At one point, we were winding our way through a Redwood grove and it was almost a greeting card picture. The mist was hanging low through the trees and the sun broke through from above. There's no way our camera would have caught it, so it was just one of those moments that we all slowed down and said, "Wow, God is good...that's cool!"

Had dinner at Sonic. I love my Cherry Lime-ades. I'm noticing that Sonic is making their way South in California. I hope there's one in Natomas soon...happy hour here I come!

Camping with Boys

I've questioned God several times over the last several weeks as to why he set the chromosones for "boy" instead of "girl" for both of our children. I've also been extremely grateful, hilariously so, that he set them to "boy".

Camping with boys has been a memorable experience for me. I've often been envious of Kiley setting off to the shower or restroom alone. Every time I head for the shower, it seems, it's with an armload of paraphernalia, and two boys in tow. It's been an experience trying to wrestle two naked boys into campground showers, get them cleaned up, dry, and dressed again while they insisted on wrestling, bickering, whining, getting soap in their eyes and so forth. (By the way, I didn't know feet could get THAT dirty!!!! I needed a putty knife some nights just to clean the dirt off!) I look forward to not having to share the showering experience with my boys for a while. :-)

That being said, there have been some great and laughable moments. (Sorry if the following offends anyone, but it's the reality of having boys, and I have to share it because it makes me laugh, so just skip to the next paragraph if the first sentence bothers you.) Brendon and I decided to teach Ian the joy of being "a man" and pee standing up during this trip. Brendon is much more graphic in his teaching for Ian, which caused me to bite my tongue in many a bathroom to keep from doubling over in laughter. One of the more printable teaching moments from Brendon went something like this, "No Ian, hmph, you don't take your pants all the way down! You have a zipper and a hole in the front of your underwear. It's there so that you can go to the bathroom without showing off you bum. Now...grab a hold of your private part (his real words) and hold tight to aim. Aim up so you don't get your shoes. Make sure you don't drip on the front of your pants because that's real embarrasing, trust me, I've done it....there you go." Suddenly, whether a bathroom had urinals that went all the way to the floor or were up off the ground became part of Ian's rating system for acceptability (his other one was how it smells -- see previous posts)...when we find one that has them to the floor, it's cause for a little "man party" among us guys. I'm not looking forward to the mess I've just caused us for cleaning back home now...

Today was a good, grunting, guy moment for us boys as we walked through the Redwoods. The boys spotted a hole near the bottom of a Redwood stump. After some investigation, we discovered that it led to the center of the stump (this stump was at least 20 feet high) and the stump was hollow. Without much hesitation, we got down on our bellies (this was not a big hole...I had to squeeze, which caused some minor clausterphobic moments for me) and squirmed through the hole to the center of the stump. All of us fit inside this stump with lots of room to spare and could see straight up through the top a long way above. We were pretty proud of ourselves, but Kiley was looking at our dirt covered clothes, faces, and arms as we wriggled our way out...it was a great guy bonding moment. (insert grunt here)

A Lifetime of Memories

As I type this, I'm sitting over a fire that is blazing at the base of a Redwood Tree stump that's bigger than most trees. The mist is rolling in around me...

Just yesterday morning we left SeaQuest State Park in Washington where we'd spent two nights and explored the destruction of Mt. St. Helens. Ian is in love with volcanoes and so seeing a real one up close was pretty cool for him but he was disappointed that there was no lava spewing at us.

As we left Seaquest, we headed for the coast and drove down the ocean. I found myself getting excited to see the ocean again. We've experienced on this trip, as I've posted before, almost every kind of geography there is in the Western U.S., except the ocean...now we were almost there.

The Oregon Coast always takes my breath away, there's nothing like it and the Northern California Coastline. We soon found a beach and just played for a while. Kiley caught what, I think will be, my favorite photo of the entire sabbatical. I'll post it below.

Finally, we were slaves to the clock and got back in our "land yacht" and continued our cruising down the coastline. The boys were begging to play more on the beach and so we started hunting for campgrounds along the beach earlier than we planned on stopping. We chose one at random as we turned around a hill and, again, it was an amazing "coincidental blessing." This little camping spot had us overlooking the ocean and listening to the crashing waves. Once we set-up, we answered the boys' begging and headed down the path for the beach.

As the sun set, we searched the tidal pools, climbed rocks and gathered shells. Ian was ecstatic to watch a crab bury itself in the sand, play with a live starfish and watch an anemone curl up on itself as he touched it.

We fell asleep last night to the crashing of the waves and the soft drizzle of rain you find so often on the coastline in the Northwest.

This morning was wet, but the boys begged to visit the beach again. So the boys and I dawned our rain coats and beach shoes and trekked down to discover that the tide had gone out...way out. Where water would have been over our heads last night was a whole universe of discovery for the boys.

For the next hour we got soaking wet in the thick mist exploring hundreds of new tidal pools, discovering hundreds of starfish, watching a starfish pull apart a mussel shell, climbing rocks and so much more that our boys will talk about for a long time to come.

Finally, we reluctantly pulled ourselves away from the beach to tear down the camp and head South. We stopped at more beaches along the way and played until arriving here in the Redwoods.

Tonight, they road their bikes around the campground with new found friends and played in the "caves" inside old Redwood trees.

Like I titled the post...a lifetime of memories...and that's just in 48 hours...

A Whole Month?!

A whole month. It’s odd to think about the fact, that for the whole month of July our family has been away from home.
That being said, it is with great reluctance and mixed emotions that we turn our truck South and make the last few legs of our journey. This last night will probably be our last multiple night in a campground.
Don’t get me wrong, we still have some of the best sites in front of us as we drive the Oregon/Northern California Coast, but there’s something that drains a little of the color our of the view when we think about returning to what we’ve called “Normal Life” (I’m not so sure it’s normal, or should be normal, it’s just the non-Biblical dysfunction that we’ve all decided to settle into).
And so we begin the journey South…
More Rambling Reflections…
• I am thankful for 24/7 time with my family. Spending this much uninterrupted time with my boys has allowed Kiley and I to gain insight into their personalities, character and world that we might miss when we share their time with school, work, etc. We’re better parents, I hope, because of this time, even though I have felt, more often, like a worse parent this summer. (How many times do I have to say “No” to buying another tacky overpriced souvenir?!)
• The Holy Spirit has done some serious overhauling inside me. I’m not ready to talk about much of it yet to anyone but Kiley, but I pray that it’s permanent. Saying, that, there are a few things I hope to follow-through on:
o Listen more, talk less.
o Keep my soul well fed and my emotions and body increasingly healthy.
o Put my ego and pride on the cross and keep them from poisoning my thinking and causing me to open my mouth.
o Remember that I really am not smart enough to think that I know how God wants His church to move. I am utterly dependent on Him because every church is uniquely designed by Him.
o Encourage and express my belief in people more and inflict the weakness of my personality to give suggestions as to how they might be better less.
o Give priority to my relational world, beginning with my family, no matter what the cost or price.
o Practice Sabbatical living (engage in Biblical patterns of rest, celebration, and relationships – by the way, those are three different kinds of time off, not the same)
• I am thankful for an extended family that we enjoy…on both sides of the family.
• I love our camper. Yes, we’ll probably sell it this year to replace the savings we’ve drained, but we’re hooked. ☺ (my friend Jim said we would be).
• Our family is called to be in the ministry. It’s in our blood. It’s who we are. It’s the way we think.
• I need to read more of the books that the world around me is reading and less of those that keep me trapped in Christianese-thinking.

The Makings of a Perfect Campground

Brendon and I were talking this morning on the way back from our morning trek to the restroom about places we’ve been this summer. He said, “Dad, this campground is the best one all summer.” That got me to thinking…we’ll have stayed in aprx. 10 different campgrounds by the time we return home, so that puts us, I think, in a place of being able to somewhat effectively evaluate what makes a perfect campground by Skor family standards. There’s a difference between a nice campground and a perfect campground:
• It has to have trees and foliage. It has to feel like you’re in the woods.
• It has to have a fire ring and nice picnic table close enough to the camper that it feels like an outdoor room extension of our camper.
• It has to have space to set up our awning/screen porch and no wind to force us to tear it down.
• It can’t be swarming with bugs. Some, we don’t mind, it’s part of camping, but we’ve stayed at places that have had so many bugs that I’ve wondered if we were in some Alfred Hitchcock movie.
• It has to give the boys a sense of adventure. Trails, stumps, mystery and other things to engage their imagination.
• Bathrooms that are close, quiet, and not feel like something in a 3rd world country. We don’t mind rustic, but gross is unacceptable.
• It has to have electricity. Call us comfortable campers, but we like our lights, heater, and fans.
• It has to have a parking pad that makes it possible to get the camper close to level. This doesn’t have to be the perfectly level cement pad of a Seniors’ RV Park (we’ve stayed in some of those), but it does have to make it possible to keep from rolling out of the bed at night.
• It has to have people who like to camp and not scream and yell all night. Call me picky, but I want to listen to the wind, birds and rain, not drunken screaming all night long.

Finally, I stopped thinking about...

It just hit me the other day. I’d gone several days and had tried to put together a to-do list for when I get back. I hadn’t tried to think about what part of my job description it would be best to pick back up and what I shouldn’t. I hadn’t thought about sermons, computers, what’s happening while I’m gone, problems over the last two years, future worries, lack of land, plans for discipleship, strategy…OK, I’ll stop my list, but you get the idea of what’s been going through my head over the last 5 weeks. It’s not that I haven’t rested…I have in a huge way, but it’s been incredibly difficult for me to not think about when I have to re-engage.

Part of the problem is that there’s always a few things left unresolved when you leave, so your brain goes to them. But, honestly, much of the problem is that I haven’t been faithful in Biblically disengaging as God prescribed, so it’s taken longer. I’ll confess, I was over-tired, and empty when we started our time. I don’t know if my tanks are full, but I do know that the things that drained me…aren’t draining me like they were the first few weeks. They aren’t even an involuntary thought. I have to WORK to make myself think about them.

Meanwhile the Holy Spirit has been re-forming my values, dreams, priorities, desires, and ego. I know I won’t be able to say that I’ll come back changed. I’m far too slow of a learner and changer for that. I have a long history of thinking I’m changed and then changing back in the blink of an eye. And, when I am back in the thick of things, who knows what will happen? He forms me there as well. ☺

I love my God. He is faithful. He is True. He is working on me despite my sin and ragged edges. He has blessed me far beyond what I should have been. I don’t know why. There are others He loves who I think deserve so much more.

I don’t know much, but this I do know.
• He has shed His blood to transform me completely.
• He has given me a family to lovingly pursue Him with together.
• He has called me to be part of His work and my dreams of success and ego mixed with a misunderstanding of my priorities are the most poisonous things to Him being able to use me.

Being Thankful

I’ve just been overwhelmed the last few days with thankfulness. Our Heavenly Father has blessed us on this trip far more than we could ever, and I mean EVER deserve.
We have had no accidents, no major repairs, no major problems with the trailer, etc. Now, I know we aren’t home yet, and, if something were to happen it wouldn’t change my appreciation for His generosity and blessing.
Plus, we’ve been gifted with so many moments, memories, “coincidences”, etc. that only He could arrange. I was listing them in my head as I was driving today:
• Almost perfect campsites (that’s a bigger blessing than you may understand) – well, except that FIRST night. ☺
• So much meaningful relationship time. Someone, before we left home asked me, “Are you sure you want to spend so much of your Sabbatical seeing family and friends? How could that be restful?” Well, we’re blessed with great family on both sides. We’ve had so many moments that I wouldn’t trade for all the world. Plus, believe it or not, I get far more rest when my boys are playing with their grandparents than if it was JUST our family. Plus, we’ve connected with other friends along the way.
• A sentimental Spiritual journey for me. We’ve had a few stops along the way that were at or near places where I made, by God’s grace, significant commitments in my relationship with my Jesus. Visiting these places for me has had a huge impact on what the Holy Spirit has been saying in my life for several months now.
• A camper. It’s raining out right now and I’m sitting, warm and dry in a screen porch. If we were tenting, I’d be miserable. If I was in a hotel, I’d be broke.
• My mom and dad. They loaned us their pick up for the summer. They didn’t have too. They paid more money than they had to get it fixed. We would not have been able to take this trip without their generosity. In so many ways, they’ve taught me the meaning of generosity.
• My beautiful bride. We’ve always enjoyed a great loving relationship, but it’s deepened this summer. It’s been fun to parent side-by-side, which we don’t always get to do in the busyness of the American lifestyle (which, by the way, is seriously wacked and non-biblical, but that’s for another post). We’re a great team and I would have no one else to partner with in this life.
• Creativity. We’ve listened to about 13 books on tape together as a family (all of the Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, The Emperor has no Clothes, and a few others by Roald Dahl). Man, this world has some creative people in it Then, you add the amazing creativity of our Creator – which is beyond imagination. We’ve seen desert, mountains, high plains, low plans, sand hills, black hills, badlands, canyons, geysers, mud pots, dinosaur bones, tons of animals, waterfalls, the Columbia River Gorge, and more. (and we’ve still got the Oregon Coast and the Redwoods to go!). No amount of random evolution could have produced that kind of creativity. I don’t care what you say…it takes more faith to believe in that than a Creative Creator.

I’ll stop this post is already way too long. ☺

In the Shadow of St. Helens

Every day I catch myself saying at the end of the day, “Wow, it feels like we experienced a lifetime today.” Today was another one of those days.

We began it lazily at our huge hotel room in Kennewick, WA. It was another one of so many undeserved blessings on this trip we’ve received…for a whole $10 extra we got this suite with three beds and the space of about three hotel rooms, plus a fridge, microwave, etc. It made last night’s supper very fun with stuff I bought from the store across the street. We sat on the beds, had an indoor picnic, and watched a movie after the boys had swam for a couple hours.
But I digress…back to this morning. When we finally got up and around, we went downstairs for the free breakfast. Brendon and I had fun with their waffle irons and made us huge waffles. He watched it cook like it was the perfect meal.

Once on the road, we headed into the Eastern Mouth of the Columbia River Gorge. Around every corner was a new site for us to talk about. We saw dozens of windsurfers, three huge dams, tug boats, cliffs of lava rock, forests of Huge Western Cedars and so much more. Our favorite moment was coming around the corner and having Mt. Hood framed in our windshield. Ian wanted to know where the lava was though.

We stopped at Multnomah falls, which was one of the things on Kiley’s list. She had sentimental memories of going there with her family as a kid and wanted us to share them. Multnomah Falls is tall and just breathtaking. We hiked, the full mile switchback trail all the way too the top and Ian and I leaned out to look straight down (Kiley and Brendon stayed back up the trail – the edge was a little much for them.)

From there, we drove through Portland and Vancouver – two of the more beautiful cities in our country I think and North to Mt. St. Helens. I had done some research and found one state park campground that we really wanted to stay at, but they don’t take same day reservations (guess I should have done my research sooner). When we arrived, they had one site left that would accomadate us so we took it. We were just blown away again when we discovered that we could not have chosen a much better campsite. It’s fairly secluded and there’s a play structure at the end of the site surrounded by trees – it seems none of the kids in the area have discovered this one yet and are playing on the others (it’s not easy to find unless you’re in our campsite). So the boys have their own private playground. There’s a ton of trails through the trees, so they’ve been playing games and having their own fantastic adventures.

As we’ll be here a couple nights, we set up the awning and the screen porch. It adds so much extra room to the camper and allows us to eat outside even on evenings like tonight when there’s a constant kind of drizzle. Some may not like the light rain while camping…but I love it at night. It puts me right to sleep!

Random Memories

Just some of my random memories that make me smile from the trip so far:
• My Nephew, Rylan, opening up the fridge in the Shop at the Cobb Ranch which they keep stocked with Pop for the grandkids and saying, “Now this…is heaven!”
• Floating down the Niobrara River with Brendon on Inner Tubes. Actually, it was more like dragging Brendon on his inner tube because the stinkin’ river was too shallow, but we had fun. Oh, and narrowly sliding under an electric fence spanning the river.
• Watching the boys learning to drive and swerving off into the pasture.
• Sitting by the fire at the Mystery Mountain campground and watching our neighbors play cards with flashlights on their forheads.
• Carrying Ian up and down stairs through Wind Cave with both of us covered with puke. His head was on my shoulder, and when something cool came up he’d whisper in my ear, “That’s cool daddy.”
• Driving through Yellowstone and hearing the boys say, “Oh, just another Bison.” They’d seen too many evidently.
• Jason and I tying at four games to four playing the card version of Settlers of Katan.
• Helping Tom lay the flooring that we brought with us from Ikea in their bathroom floor.
• Going through the maze in Rapid City with Kiley’s parents and hearing the boys giggling all the way across the maze as they ran through with their PaPa.
• Saying, “We’ll never see a grizzly bear in Yellowstone. They’re rare!” and then seeing two.
• Skipping rocks on the Bitterroot river in my home town with the boys. I still hold the record at 8 skips.
• Going down the two story water slide at the Holiday Inn Express in Sturgis, SD and it sounding like a Water Buffalo was in the thing as it rocked back and forth all the way down. Then having Kiley go down and the end of the slide catch her so off guard she tried to breathe in as she went under the water (it was funny later). ☺
• Sitting in our screen porch late at night in West Yellowstone visiting with the Anderson family.
• Eating Ice Cream on the 2nd floor deck of the Old Faithful Inn watching Old Faithful go off and make a rainbow in the setting sun.
• Laying in the hammock and taking a nap as the evening breeze rocked me to sleep at the Cobb Ranch.

A Night In a Hotel

It's so hard to believe our seven weeks is drawing so close to its end. The
first two weeks crept gloriously slow; however the weeks since have simply
flown. It was difficult to say "goodbye" to my family. The boys don't get
much time with them and enjoy the time they do have to the full. This stay
in particular was a very rich time with their "other" grandparents. Whether
or not they remember much of this trip as they age, I will hold dear the
memories of experiencing Yellowstone, the Badlands and the Black Hills with
my children and my parents. My dad is somewhat of a siren for children and
the boys aren't immune to his charms either. They had so much fun shooting
the 22, catching turtles and bugs, playing in and climbing through the
canyons, driving the car and truck, eating cookies and drinking Dr Pepper
for breakfast and as a culmination, doing the life-size maze in the Black
Hills with him. Brendon insisted he, dad and Ian would be one team and
Michael, mom and I would be the other team. I can still hear the boys
laughing as they ran to stay ahead of us. I called mom on the phone
yesterday and apparently, they had quite an effect on dad as well. He said
it was pretty quiet around the house and that he misses hearing little boys
around the place.

Saturday evening/Sunday morning was bitter-sweet as we took a slight detour
and spent about 18 hours in Hamilton, MT (Michael's home town). I have
memories of Hamilton over the years as well, though I only visited for a
week or so at a time about every two years. It's situated in a beautiful
canyon along the Bitteroot river. We stayed at a campground along the river
Saturday night (after a quick drive through the town) and then went to
Michael's home church Sunday morning. Many things have changed, many others
are the same. It was fun to see things and have Michael point out his old
schools and where his friends lived. This was the first time we've been to
Hamilton since Jon and Esther moved to California. It was quite strange to
be there and not have Jon and Esther living on the hill outside of town,
running the DQ. While it left a melancholy feeling, I'm grateful the boys
are able to spend more time with them since they're so close to us.

Sunday morning was an interesting experience and fun. Many people at the
Hamilton Wesleyan Church (now called Mountain View Wesleyan) are the same
people Michael grew up with and many have been there long enough to know my
family from when we held revival meeting there. When the pastor introduced
us during the service, someone piped up from the back, "Tell them they can
go back to Sacramento, but they need to send Jon and Esther back." Everyone
laughed quite a bit. After church, we went to Perkins with several old
friends and I was reminded that so many in that church are simply the salt
of the earth. We had such a great time visiting and catching up on their
lives and many other people who are mutual friends that we've lost contact
with over the years.

Sunday night ended up more tiring than we planned. We didn't get out of
Hamilton until well after 2 and had a hard time finding a campground for the
night. We finally found an RV park in Post Falls, ID sometime after 8, when
we were all completely whipped. It was a pretty fussy place with decorator
rocks of various colors marking different areas (not a spot of bare dirt
could be found in the entire campground) and loaded with large, expensive
motorhomes and fifth wheel trailers. I felt rather red neck/white trash-ish
as we pulled the 'ol tent trailer in and our loud, pent up, wound up
children tumbled out of the truck running and screaming full speed and
volume. It took a while to get set up, it seemed and I was more worn out,
body and spirit, than I've felt in a long time. Within the first two hours
of getting to the campground, I managed to drop a cement block on two bare
toes, overflow a toilet, put a huge crack/gash/hole in the trailer's table
and lose 75 cents in a soda machine without getting the caffeine I so
desperately longed for. I don't know that I've cried like that in quite some
time. Everything was a stupid, non-important issue, but lumped together when
I was so worn out anyway, it was just too much. This morning went fairly
smoothly, except that darn toilet overflowed for someone else while I was
trying to get my hair and make-up done, so I got chased out of the bathroom
and had to finish up elsewhere.

We were hoping to make last night a hotel night, but by the time we found
any kind of reasonably priced lodging with a pool, it was too late for the
boys to enjoy it that evening. The campground had wifi (and an indoor pool,
but the pool didn't open until 10 and checkout was at 11...I hate it when
they do that), so Michael found a great hotel and reserved it this morning.
After a nice short drive, we got to the hotel mid-afternoon--just in time
for a quick nap. The boys swam a good two hours (I got some exercise in and
then was able to sit and visit with Michael while we watched them swim some
more) and then we picnicked in our hotel room. The boys are really worn out
and are nodding off as I type.

The plan tomorrow is to find a nice campground that will suffice for two
nights and then hike Multnomah Falls and take a look around Mt St. Helens
over the course of a couple of days before heading down the coast and taking
in the redwoods on the way home.

Sunday

We woke up this morning to the sound of the Bitterroot River racing over the rocks just outside the camper door. We took our time getting ready, but eventually got everything torn down in time to head over to what used to be the Hamilton Wesleyan Church, but was recently renamed the Mt. View Wesleyan Church. This is the church where I grew up. Many of the people there had a huge hand in the shaping of my adult life. I have only been there a small handful of times, other than a summer internship since 1991.

We had warned no one we were coming, so it was a blast to see the reactions on some of our old friends' faces as we walked in the doors of the small church. We created such a stir that services started late.

When the Pastor got up for his announcements, he welcomed us and Herb Bounds, a long time friend of my folks, yelled from the back "It's nice to have them here, but could they please go and send back Jon and Esther?! We miss them more!" Everyone laughed.

They're working hard to get the church updated. They've put in nice new carpet, chairs, sound system, projector and more.

After service a few of them men helped me repair the jack that I had bent to a 45 degree angle going over a curb in Rapid City (long story that I really don't want to type yet, I'm still mad at myself) in the back yard of the church.

We visited with several families whom I had not seen in a long time, and, of course, they all knew Kiley from her travels with her folks as well as her attachment to me. I think they enjoy talking to her more. :-)

From there, we went out to eat with the David, Rhonda, Bruce King and their two youngest kids. Bruce was my CYC leader for years and had much to do with some of my early value system. David is a few years older than I am and I've admired his faithfulness to Hamilton Wesleyan. He and his wife have been good friends to my folks. Leo and Susan also joined us. I don't know them well, but she worked for my folks for a long time during their last years in Hamilton.

We drove around town and took pictures of my old stomping grounds. I was amazed that the boys were actually interested in where I grew up. We couldn't get up to see our old house, but were able to see it through binoculars across a field. It's been well cared for and they even added more space onto my old bedroom!

From there, we headed West. We had heard about a large Indoor Water Park in Kellog, ID, so we excitedly headed there. Once there though, we discovered that it was VERY expensive to stay. (I explained it to the boys as, "We could stay here and play for one night or we could by an XBox 360 and keep it." -- that kind of put things in perspective.).

So, disappointed, we headed on West and found a nice little campground in the cool evening winds of Post Falls, ID. We arrived just in time for a light picnic dinner and went to bed.

We'll head towards the Columbia River Gorge on Monday, but at a much slower pace.

Saturday

Today was a travel day. We slept in this morning (until past 9) and then got on the road.
We made a lunch stop in Billings, MT. and had lunch with a college buddy of mine, Brian Kraft and his new wife of about 9 months. Brian is a gifted counselor, I’m excited to see him healing and possibly headed back into the ministry after his previous wife left him several years ago and he was forced to step out of the ministry.
The rest of the day was spent driving across Montana (it’s a bigger state than most people realize). We dropped South and came up the Bitterroot Valley, where I grew up, from the South. It’s an incredibly gorgeous drive. We drove past the location of the Battle of the Little Big Horn, a small herd of Rocky Mountain Sheep, the place where I learned to ski, and many more just fun sights.
In between fighting with each other, I think the boys enjoyed it, but it was a long day for them. We won’t do any days that long the rest of the trip.
Tonight, we’re camping on the banks of the Bitterroot River on the South side of Hamilton. Hamilton is where I claim as my home town and I haven’t been here in several years. It’s changed a lot.
Tomorrow, we’ll got to church at my home church, fix the bent hitch and then head for the Columbia River Gorge.

Last Day with the Grandparents

Today was one of those memorable days for the boys. They experience so much, that they said that it felt like a whole bunch of days in one.
We started out with a pancake breakfast at our favorite campground of the summer – Mystery Mountain Resort, with Kiley’s folks. We then took a short hike across the campground where they excitedly showed their grandparents the “Mystery Cabin”.
After we packed up, we headed over to the big Maze that our family had done a few weeks ago (it seems like only a few days ago –wow this has flown by). The boys begged to take their grandparents through it. Brendon split us up into teams, he and Ian went with their grandpa (PaPa) and Kiley, Karen (Kiley’s mom whom the boys call MoMo) and I went as a second team. The boys wanted to race. We could hear both boys laughing so hard it almost made MY sides ache as they made PaPa run with them. Tom (PaPa) later said that it was one of his favorite memories of the summer with the boys.
Who won? That’s debatable…let’s just say that I held the door at the finish of the maze open for the boys and PaPa to finish first. ☺
From there, it was a quick lunch and we said goodbye to Kiley’s folks and we headed West. It was a sad moment for all of us as we basically have spent the first five weeks of our Sabbatical with them between time in Yellowstone and our time at the ranch. Not many people can say that they enjoy spending that much time with their extended family, but we have such incredible family on both sides, that these times are precious and, believe it or not, very relaxing.
We made a long drive of it and stopped in Hardin, MT just in time for the boys and I to go swimming in the campground pool before it closed for the night. It was hot and sticky so the pool felt awesome.

Goodbye to the Ranch

We said goodbye to the Cobb Ranch for the summer early this morning and headed towards Hot Springs, SD.
It was eerily silent in the truck as the boys road with Kiley’s folks, who went with us for this last little trip. Today is their 42nd Wedding Anniversary and they wanted to spend it with us. At least that’s what they said, we know that they were more interested in spending it with their grandsons. ☺
Once in Hot Springs, we stopped at the Wooly Mammoth Dig site. All of us thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Ian is enamored with anything dinosaur these days, so to see thousands of Mammoth bones actually being dug up while we watched was almost more than he could handle. Brendon, although somewhat less patient, is a budding history buff, so he got caught up in it as well.
Once our time at the dig was done, Tom decided we needed a picnic lunch. He picked the food…it was what he called “PaPa food” for lunch. We had pop (that’s the real word for Soda), cheetos, cheese puffs, chips, and about every other kind of junk food he could find at the store. He found a little picnic spot by a water fall where we gorged ourselves on the most unhealthy meal all summer. ☺
From there, we went on to Rapid City and set up the trailer at our summer’s favorite campground again (we went back for one night today for the start of the trip home). The moment the trailer was set up, there was a flash of lighting, a roll of thunder and someone turned on the fire hose. We sat in the trailer for the next hour as water poured, and I mean POURED down so loud we could hardly hear ourselves. We laughed the time away playing a game of SWAP.
From there, we took Tom and Karen out for their anniversary to Red Lobster, one of their favorite restaurants. We shopped for a couple birthday presents for extended family and then headed back to roast s’mores over the campfire. With my new method of starting a fire with a road flare the rain didn’t matter.
We found at Cost Plus World Market, a spreadable Chocolate Caramel. Spread that stuff on a graham cracker, add roasted Marshmallow and you have one incredible fat producing evening snack…

Eating Possum, Neutering Cats and Funerals

It's been an interesting week. I'm further reminded why I never quite fit
any molds. Fact is, I come from odd stock. They're really nice, entertaining
people; just odd, but I digress...

Sunday we went to morning church in Eli and then joined the church my
parents go to in Merriman Sunday evenings. My eldest cousin, Brett, had a
life-transforming conversion to Christ a couple of years ago and I still get
a strange, though good feeling watching him play fiddle for worship. He and
his wife, Diane, don't miss church and are very vocal about how Christ has
completely changed their lives. Watching a quiet, gritty cowboy like Brett
(he even has the black handlebar mustache) praise God with everything he is
is a beautiful sight.

Out here, everyone has to drive quite a distance to get to church so people
often bring food for church and Bible study so you can have a bite of
snack/supper afterwards. This week there was a wonderful chicken/cheese dip
with nachos and a BBQ sausage dish. I took some of both. It was obvious that
the sausage in the BBQ dish was some sort of venison, though my hunch came
from texture alone since it didn't have a tell tale gamey flavor. On the
ride home, my dad looked at mom and said something to the effect of, "I'm
not sure what the whole possum dish thing was about." POSSUM!!! Now I can
add possum to the list of odd foods I've encountered in my life. I must say,
I prefer possum to bear or moose...at least that particular recipe.

This week has been a rather hard one for my mom and grandmother in
particular. The end of last week my mom's cousin died very suddenly from
complications arising from a routine check-up. Joni was only 52 years old
and was the youngest of my mom's cousins. I didn't happen to throw in
anything appropriate for a funeral, though I probably should have since I've
gone to a funeral six out of the last eight trips I've made back home. Of
course my mom had tons of patterns and extra fabric she keeps on hand, so I
spent Monday afternoon making a black skirt to wear to the funeral on
Wednesday. It was easier and took less time to whip out a skirt than drive
into town and hope there was something decent for a decent price. You gotta
love living in the middle of nowhere.

My parents always have a bunch of cats hanging around. Of course, lots of
cats mean there are always MORE cats with each new litter. Right now my
folks' cat population is down to on tom and one female who are both from the
same litter. Since dad is kind of concerned about having dumb cats because
of inbreeding, he decided to get the tom cat neutered. My uncle Rich offered
to do it for free, but considering the fact he's about as much of a vet as I
am, dad figured it would be more humane to take "floofball" to an actual
vet. Ian, being the animal lover, opted to go with dad and console floofball
on the 45 minute trip to the vet and then back again. He told my mom he'd
never seen an actual animal doctor and really wanted to. It was an
educational day for Ian as the vet is of the retired variety and does his
vet work out of the back of his pickup truck. I think I now understand why
they usually keep animals for "observation" after they do stuff like that.
Floof looked like a dead cat for about four hours. It was starting to get
concerning. He's such a nice ol' cat and the thought of losing him over
something as stupid as a simple neutering job was not one mom and I were
liking. Finally, after about four to five hours, he started twitching his
ears to get the flies off and eventually woke up enough to close his eyes
and sleep like a normal cat. (He laid rigid with his eyes open that initial
4 to 5 hours. It was a little freaky.) This morning my dad found him
sleeping in the box with the two turtles the boys captured. I guess he was
lonely. He seems none the worse for his horrid experience, though the
kittens don't like him anymore. Poor floofball...