Winona

Sorry, I have not posted for a while, and now I give you a couple at once.  I'll try to spread them out next time.  

Last weekend we were able to go to Winona, Minnesota where Bryan and Becky Rice live.  Their son Adam came (not pictured - not sure why he isn't pictured - he is a real good looking guy so its not like it would have ruined the picture or anything - plus he is available!  My bad Adam, this blog is so popular you probably just missed out on at least 3 or 4 dating opportunities.  Okay, time to end the longest paranthesis break ever in a sentence - sorry English teachers!)  

Josh, Holly, and Seth Carlson were there.  It was very fun to see people we know and it made us even more excited for our (Dave and Anita only) trip to the Twin Cities and to Willmar in October.  We are very anxious to see all our family & friends in Cardinal country!

Enjoy some pics from the hot tub and apple orchard!

Twins!

Wow!  What a week for the Twins.  Now that they are in first, Emily made a Twins magic number count down.  Hopefully it will be down to three after Friday night!  We are able to follow them on the internet, the radio, and on the TV some.  The only bad thing is that this exciting finish is hard on the study habits.  Oh well...

If the Twins and the White Sox tie, then they play a one game playoff in Chicago on Tuesday!  I think I might have to find a way to cheer my Twins on in person if that happens.  Oh, I better go...  I need to call my professor and give him a heads up about the really bad cold  that is going to hit me about 9pm Monday night.

Go Twins - more posts to come soon!

Floods

On Saturday, September 13, we had almost 6.7 inches of rain.  The total for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday was over ten inches in some places in Chicago.  The 6.7 inches in one day was the most ever recorded in Chicago, and we were here for it!  Isn't that special?  I have never used an umbrella as much as I have here!  The umbrella, by the way, is an excellent invention. 

For all you FCC youth group members and leaders, this video is taken from the bridge over the little river that we had to walk over to get to North Park's campus during our summer trips.  It is not the bridge that we walked over to get to the showers, but this is the same river.   This little river has flooded many Chicago neighborhoods over the last few days.

Luke ran up to the river when we made this video and then immediately turned around and said, "All this water makes me really have to go to the bathroom!"  Ha-ha.  

Curious Natalie!

Yeah, I know I had a perfect opportunity to use alliteration in the title of this post, but Anita and I have committed not to make that her nickname.


My kids like to watch the cartoon Curious George. And, growing up I used to love Curious George as well as the Man with the yellow hat. It was my favorite book. However, as I have grown up (I use that term loosely), I have become increasingly frustrated with the yellow man and the monkey. Everyone, but aparently not the yellow man, knows that George's curiosity is going to get him in piping hot water at some point in the half hour show. I feel like the yellow man should be able to anticipate George's trouble as those of us transfixed to the screen can easily tell when something mischievous is about to happen. But, maybe in real cartoon life it isn't that easy. The show would be a lot less fun to watch if the yellow man excelled at anticipation. The reality is that to really control George there would need to be someone constantly watching him every minute of every day. I suppose he could be put in a cage. A cage would be appropiate for a monkey, but I think that if we used it, we would quickly get locked up by the Chicago PD, whom by the way, we are working hard at not meeting again. :)


So the other day Natalie had some time on her hands, which is rarely a good thing. Quick side story here - Natalie was hungry tonight and she came up to me wanting me to feel her stomach while commenting, "My tummy is begging for food." Quite an interesting and very cute way for a three year old to say that she's hungry! - So back to the afternoon, you know the one when she had some time on her hands. She must have been thinking the same thing about her stomach. So being the problem solver that she is, she found a tortilla, put some american cheese on it, and put it in the microwave. Natalie was working on making a quesadilla just like she has seen her mom do many times.


Unfortunately, Natalie seems to be not very good with numbers. Soon our noses began to tell us that something was wrong. The smell led us to the kitchen where we found a quesadilla in the microwave with 58 minutes left to cook! Believe me, the apartment had an interesting aroma for the next 12 hours or so!


I wonder if the cage we ordered is really, really nice...

A Word (or two) From Anita

The time has come for me to get a word in!  :)  We were so happy to have my parents come for a visit last week.  We celebrated my dad's 60th birthday with a cake, Chicago pizza, and a trip to Lake Michigan.  Grandpa G. is a big fan of the Great Lakes because they have the best beaches.  He showed the kids how to bury each other in the sand and they had such fun!  

We are staying busy and enjoying the sites of Chicago.  God has definitely gone before us, and we feel safe in His care! Having Dave's brother and his wife only two miles away has been really special.  I am also really blessed by my new job.  I have completed three weeks of work in the Financial Aid office at North Park.  My job has offered some variety, much brain challenges, and a sense of community. All of these aspects are super for me.  Dave is able to stay with Natalie while I am at the office and our tag teaming has even worked out great.  Thank you for your prayers!  We can feel your love all the way over here in the big Windy City!

Trusting in Him,   Anita

School In Chicago!

The kids were served their traditional "last meal" before their freedom ended and the daily grind of school began.  Emily was the most excited for school as the other kids had found friends in the building to hang out with.  Emily, however had no luck meeting someone her age so she was bored and couldn't wait to get to school.  Of course a bored Emily isn't great for in-house relations so let me tell you, everyone was excited for school!

The kids were excited but also nervous as they bravely marched into their new surroundings on Tuesday morning.  Each of them had a positive experience which is an answer to prayer!

This neighborhood is proving to be a most interesting one.  It is comprised of many nationalities.  The town of Willmar was a good primer for us with its population of Latin Americans, Somalians, and Northern Europeans.  This neighborhood seems to be filled with countless nationalities.  One of my professors who lives near me told us that he has six neighbors from six different parts of the world!

Being at the school, I could not honestly tell you which nationality is in the majority.  There seems to be a population from the Asian countries, people from India and Pakistan, Middle Eastern people, African Americans, Southern Europeans, Northern Europeans, and Latin Americans.  People almost literally from all around the world!  What an opportunity for our children, I hope they become friends with some children from a cool place in our world.  With my luck, they'll all be friends with Iowans!  Guess you can't get much cooler than that!

Oh by the way, today Emily came home with an assignment.  She needed to go to a library and check out a biography.  We walked two blocks to the nearest library, got a library card, and checked out a biography on Michael Jordan!

Blessings,

Dave

Story of a Basketball Father's Failure

So we sat down for dinner tonight after a big day.  The biggest news of the day is that after much work the kids are finally registered for school!  Each child had to see an Illinois doctor (which took three hours yesterday), had to have their transcripts sent, and had to get a very official birth certificate sent.  The birth certificate we still do not have, but that is a story in itself.  The point is they are registered!

Luke's teacher is Mrs. McFarland (trying to convince him that she has to be at least some kind of relation to Mr. [Ronald] McDonald but he isn't buying it).  Alise's teacher is Mrs. Chung, and Emily's teacher is Mrs. Jordan.  

So at supper I said to Emily that maybe her teacher is Michael Jordon's wife and her response stung me and made me realize that I have truly failed as a basketball father.  :(  Emily said, "Who is Michael Jordan?"  Now you have to understand that we are a basketball family.  We have spent a lot of time at the gym, and we talk about it some around the house - okay a lot.  Michael Jordan is basketball - how could I have failed and not educated them about this great man whose town I now reside in?  It was a blow.

Then Luke saved the day, or so I thought.  His blue eyes got huge and even though I was a mere 20 inches from him he loudly and enthusiatically (Luke is enthusiatic about everything even seeing dogs and a squirrel running around while at a zoo - true story) proclaimed that he knew Michael Jordan!  Instantly I was proud of my son.   Of course the girls might not know of Michael but my son - he does.  I was relieved that I was not a total failure. 

Right behind the feeling of pride though, came a feeling of doubt as Luke does have a history of being enthusiatically wrong at times.  So with some trepidation I asked him how he knew about the great Michael Jordan.  Luke now was feeling pride in his own expertise as he could see in my eyes  how proud I was of him.  With equal enthusiasm he yelled, "He plays for the Willmar Basketball team!"  

Suddenly I realized that I had truly failed.  Luke does not have any idea of who Michael Jordan is.  I'm sure Jordan Smith who does play for the Willmar Cardinals would appreciate being compared to MJ but I'll be the first to tell him that although he is very good, he is not the next coming of Air Jordan.  

No, I have to come to grips with the fact that my children truly have not seen Michael Jordan play, nor do they even know of his existence.  Wouldn't it be sad if at the end of your life your kids didn't know, not about MJ, but about Jesus?  That you as a parent never introduced them to their Savior?  Thank goodness it was only MJ we forgot to tell them about.

Anyway, did you see Luke's form in that picture?  Michael Jordan move out of the way... 

Blessings,

Dave