A few fun photos from the past couple of months

Well, I don't have any new news on when Iwill be in Lima, it's still estimated that my work visa won't be done until the end of November sometime. So, I thought I'd share some pictures from the past few months to show how good home, family, and friends are.

My Mom and Toby hiking.

Friends that came for the Hootenanny.


Night swim, that Karli talked us into, at Lake Blaine.
(thanks Kar, it was fun and is a great memory)

Toby and Robby with roller coaster hair at Magic Mountain in L.A

Karli, Toby, and I at the Ice Cave.

The family, minus Robby :( , camping at Crystal Lake.

My friend Melissa, her two girls, Karli and I at the Garden of the Gods in CO Springs.

Hill Kids at Sea World, proving you're never to old to ride a manatee.

Night water pit Challenge at YAA. This is really only something that you would do at camp. :) Karli and I are on the left. The goal is to knock the opponents into the water first. Karli and I won...but still fell victim to being pulled into the breath-taking, ice cold water below. :)

Pumpkins and Picnics

I spent four days in Bozeman last week helping my friend Kim watch the Hawthorne kids,while their parents were out of town. I don't really think she needed my help, but it was a great excuse to spend time up at camp with her, other friends, and the five Hawthorne kids, who I have missed since I moved back to Lewistown a little over a year ago. The kids are great and make things pretty easy. Because they had school, Kim and I had a chance just to hang out too. We hiked up the Cottonwood Canyon trail to the Big Rock (official name?) and had a picnic one afternoon. The view from the top is as breathtaking as the last uphill, my heart is beating abnormally fast, and what's the elevation here again? section of the trail, so it makes it worth while... that and the thought that maybe the burning in your legs is possibly causing some kind of quad or calf toning and that by the time you are finished you might have the legs of a marathon runner.

I took some pumpkins and a bigger pumpkin/squash cross breed thing (a squmpkin if you will),that my Mom had grown in her garden, to carve with the kids. Overall it went well, messy, of course, but that's half the fun. The kids all carved their little pumpkins, some with a bit of help, and then we tried to carve the big guy. He didn't really carve so good and was too soft, so we decided the best thing to do was to thow it out the window on the second story of the house, onto the cement below and watch it splat. The kids thought this was a great idea, of course, so we did it. There is something about throwing stuff from high places that is just intriguing... maybe that's just me. :) Any way, it made a good mess, which we cleaned up right away so that the bears wouldn't decide to come and share in the squmpkin fun later that night. I lived up at camp for over a year and never saw a bear up close, so part of me wanted one to visit, so I could get a better look... from inside the locked house. I was relieved when no bears showed up that night. :)

Patience and Enjoying the Now

Waterfall in Yellowstone


Visiting my brother Robby in Wyoming

My friend Shannon and I

Girl's night with friends from Bozeman

Having fun after swimming in the Boiling River in Yellowstone Park. (If you are ever in the park you should should definitely take a dip. Hot Water from geothermal activity cascades off the river banks and mixes with the cold river water)

About a week and a half ago I found out that things are going to take a little bit longer than expected for my work visa to be completed. Instead of the original estimate of later October, it now looks like it is going to be the end of November. Initially I was frustrated, but then came to the realization that there is nothing I can to to change the timing of things. Not that I am going to stop praying that God speeds things up a bit, but now I can just take comfort in the fact that He is in control and that I will arrive in Lima according to His timing.


I have decided that it is much easier to have patience in the presence of amazing friends and family. I have started substitute teaching again, but have really just been able to take advantage of opportunities to spend time with family and friends and enjoy fall. That has meant being able to go hiking with friends, visit my brother in Wyoming, play cards with my grandparents, make numerous visits to Bozeman, visit Yellowstone, and much more. I also feel like God has answered my prayer for patience and has focused my attention on the positives of being home for a little while longer.