Minnesota...and finally snow!

We spent the last week of our furlough in Minneapolis with my brother and his family.  We had a wonderful time with them, and enjoyed all the fun things they had planned for us to do.  Probably the most special part of our visit was getting to know our new nephew/cousin Colton Ray.  He is the cutest laid-back baby you could imagine with the most kissable cheeks!  Dan and Kate were wonderful hosts and absolutely spoiled us with fun trips to the Mall of America, Eagles Nest, fun lunches out, a date night for John and I, and bowling!  We also had time to just relax and hang-out too which was great.  Thanks for everything Dan and Kate!

There was snow!  Ella finally got to use her new snow gear!

Uncle Dan got to use his snow gear too!

Ella's first snow angel.  

Colton and Lydia did great as we went from place to place.

The big slide at Eagle Nest, an indoor kids park.

Ella and Uncle Dan at the Mall of America  Aquarium

We rode rides at the Mall of America for most of the day.

Ella's first time bowling.  

Hangin' Out

Another Plane Ride...Another Destination. South Dakota!

December 9th found us at the airport again.  The girls are getting used to airports by now and enjoy roaming around and watching the planes.  We left balmy Phoenix and flew into Omaha, Nebraska and then made the trek up to Yankton, South Dakota by car.  

We had been preparing Ella for the cold weather in South Dakota, and had promised sledding, snow angels, snowmen building, and snowball fights.  But instead, we found NO SNOW and weather that was sometimes in the 50's!  Can't believe that after three Christmas living away where there is no snow, we return to the South Dakota tundra for a snowless Christmas.  Nevertheless, just being with family was enough to get us in the Christmas spirit and we had a wonderful time.  We had the opportunity to see many of my (Jennie's) extended family and the girls got a lot of Grandpa and Grandma time.  John was also given the opportunity to do his Mission's Seminar at Calvary Baptist, one of our supporting churches. 

Below are some picture highlights of our 3 weeks in South Dakota.  

Lot's of playtime with Grandpa and Grandma

Staying warm!  (We did have a few cold days...)

The piano...one of the best toys at Grandma's house!

Christmas celebration at the Barr's house in Sioux Falls.  The girls had a great time with Great Aunt Amy and her kids.

The Bows!  A highlight for Lydia.

Golfing on Christmas Day in South Dakota!

Ella fell in love with Jeff, the neighborhood cat.

Meeting our new cousin Colton for the first time!

Playing at the Children's Museum in Brookings.  (Highly recommended!  Great place!)

Learning to play the Wii.  Ella was a pro by the end of our trip.

Being with family...it doesn't get much better.

Albuquerque!

While we were staying in Phoenix, we took a weekend trip over to New Mexico to visit Mountain Christian Church (MCC), in the East Mountains of Albuquerque.  We had never been to Albuquerque before and had no idea how beautiful this city, surrounded by mountains was....or how much it reminded us of the mountains of Bolivia.  


MCC has a special place in our hearts, as we have been a part of receiving short term teams from this church here in Bolivia several times.  Over the past two years we have gotten to know many people from this congregation.  So even though we have never visited Albuquerque or MCC before, it still felt like visiting some place warm and familiar.  


We were able to visit with many past team members, and John also did a Saturday morning seminar, teaching on several topics, including worldview, poverty, and resources.  We had an amazing time, and also enjoyed our first "glimpse" of snow during our furlough home.  Actually we were apart of a "winter storm" but stayed warm and cozy with Marvin and Barb Proctor, who hosted us in their home, while we watched several inches of snow accumulate.  


Thank you MCC for inviting us to come and share with you all, and for loving on us while we were with you!