Last week on our day off we drove up to Whitecap mountain and had a fund day of skiing. There was 6 inches of fresh powder and nobody was really there, so it felt like we had the entire place to ourselves. I (Larry) tried going off of some boxes emphasis on the word TRY that day, it was some peoples first time skiing in powder, and Laura broke her pole halfway through the day. Overall it was a fun time on the slopes and a great day off. Check out some pictures.
We look forward to WWC (Wisconsin Wilderness Campus) coming each year for their retreat to camp. I (Larry) attended this school my freshmen year and my good friend Seth and his wife and there two kids are on staff at the college. They live 2 hours from us and it is a joy to be able to see each other periodically. They just had a little girl Sadie and she is so adorable. It was great to have them over on Laura’s birthday and simply spend time with them. We played broomball, cross-country skied, and ate lots of good food. Here are some pictures of the little ones.
This is a shout out to my aunt and uncle and cousins who came to visit last weekend. Boy, we played hard together! They loaded up the family van for the weekend to visit us and to experience a bit of winter fun at camp. It was so sweet to simply hang out together as extended family festivities have become mostly limited to once a year holidays when trying to combine differing schedules. They got to see a small bit of our world. We stayed up late playing plenty of games, at grilled pizza in the winter, taught the entire family how to ski, tubed, played broomball, and even got crushed in games of carpet ball. I’ll let the pictures below speak for themselves!
Today was my birthday. It was a simple day, similar to so many others. Yet, it gave me a chance to stop and reflect a bit. (Not that I necessarily reminisced over all 28 years of my life to date to reach an epiphanal conclusion.) Quite simply, I concluded: I am blessed. I don’t use that word lightly…I don’t like to tritely throw around the cliche “blessed” term, but for lack of something more articulate at this time of night, I write just that. I am blessed. I am thankful. Life is full and rich and good. I am grateful. I love where we live in this season and place. I am so thankful for the many people near and far who have touched our lives in ways they may never fully know. Moreover, I know that more than dear friends, an amazing husband, a warm home, rich memories, an incredible combination of work through school and camp and so much in between——-I know that I have hope beyond whatever circumstances….a hope in God’s grace. I am so thankful at the mere thought of being embraced in the Father’s love…not because I’ve got it together or figured out by any means, but because He loved me first.
(I got up on the morning of my birthday to find my birthday present from Larry pictured above.)
I didn’t know exactly how bad it was the day multiple liquids were leaking from our subaru after I parked it in the garage. Much to our dismay, we soon found out that it was sick. Very (costly) sick. It’s insides were struck with head gasket replacement needs, timing belt issues, and some other cracked insides that Larry could tell you about in great detail…I am get a bit weasy talking about it. Not sure about treatment, we sought advice from a local doctor.
We are so thankful to Mike for helping us with the repairs…we have ordered a ton of parts, and we are soooooooo thankful to Mike for sharing his time and skills of car maintenance with us! Thank you!!!!! In the meantime, Larry is learning more about engines and insides and how to cure the swine flu in vehicles!
Yes, Wintertainment is a word. Huh? What is it? It is the week between Christmas and New Years when camp is packed out with jr high and high school students. Some come with youth groups that we partner with, others simply come with friends. Nothing like a high energy week after Christmas of human bowling, ski/snowboard competitions, razleblast, animal ball, a coffee house…yet, the coolest part is the conversations had, the challenges from God’s word in sessions, and the growth that happens in the lives of many. The days were long, but sooooooooooo worth it. I gotta admit I wasn’t too focused on taking pictures, but below are just a few from teaching ski lessons on the hill.
