Just So Beautiful

Just couldn't help myself - I had to get outside to take some photos of the gorgeous spring we're experiencing. Enjoy!

Wooing and Schussing

Well, other than it being months since I've posted, it's good to be back in the saddle again, so to speak. I really don't like this new blog layout, and for me it's confusing and clumsy and extremely slow so I've avoided posting for the past weeks. However, I thought I'd give it another whirl, but I now know what you all in the FaceBook world have discovered - blogging is pretty much a thing of the past. However, since I don't FaceBook, this is my only outlet to get out the news. So for the 6 of you who read this blog, enjoy!

Just before Christmas, I made reservations at a B&B called, "Cabins and Candlelight." It was to surprise my husband for his 65th birthday (Groundhog Day) and to get him out of the office for a short respite. The 2 log cabins are situated on 30 acres near Thorntown, which is just a 45 minute drive from us. I surprised him by whisking him away on Friday evening after work and driving him to our little love nest. The cabin was small but beautifully appointed and immaculate. When we walked in, some dreamy music was playing over the intercom system and dinner that night consisted of filet mignon on the grill with baked potato and all the trimmings. That was all provided and was in the refrigerator along with breakfast goodies (eggs and sausage) for the next 2 mornings. We crashed! The boy was exhausted and just needed some downtime. That night it snowed so when we awakened, all was still and quiet with the snow skiffing across the ground. We ate breakfast and went for a walk to the Sugar Creek which ran through the property. Later on that morning, we drove to Crawfordsville to take in a movie and decided on "Zero Dark Thirty." Recommend it. That evening we ate at a somewhat famous restaurant in Thorntown called "Stookey's," and spent the rest of the evening soaking in the hot tub.

On Sunday we unpacked then repacked for a Monday morning zero dark thirty take-off flight to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to snow ski. This too had been scheduled for awhile and just happened to immediately come on the heels of the cabin get-away. We were joined by Austin (youth pastor and flying buddy) and Amber, who love to ski too and were able to get away at the same time. We ended up skiing at Santa Fe and the weather, snow conditions and crowds couldn't have been better! Absolutely gorgeous day, with perfect snow and never a wait for the lifts. We skied the whole day and were too tired to try it again next day so we just tooled around Santa Fe and Albuquerque. The last night we stayed at a TLF (transient living facility) on Kirtland Air Force Base and flew out mid-morning to get home Thursday night around 8ish.

So that's our short respite from the hectic pace at church and work, and we find ourselves right back into renewal and Lenten services as well as hospital ER duty, to take up the mantel again. It was a wonderful time to renew our souls and strengthen our relationships. We all so appreciated the Lord's blessing.  Enjoy the pictures and see you sometime soon...

Our Love Nest

View from the kitchen

Cozy in front of the fireplace

On the slopes at Santa Fe

Gorgeous vistas at 12,000'

Stopping for a photo shoot

Some Lasts

One last walk

One last game

One last "kite"

One last flight

One last fire

One last night

 

One last camp

One last...er...dump

One last cuppa

One last forever

All Things Mechanical

Just driving this big rig was tough -Backseat riders didn't even care!

Inspecting a thingamajig

A Menards stop to buy tape to wrap the wiring that was pinched that caused the lights to fail that...

Austin trying to locate a leak. Notice the ever-ready tools!

Loading and unloading the equipment

View of the toy hauler with ramp down

Rounding up all the gear

All of that for this

Some kid ran into the back of the camper when we were stopped at a stop sign. He said he couldn't see the camper because his visor was down. Can anyone spell "texting"???

We got a scratch

Deke didn't mind; the accident happened right next to the tracks!

Pot Pourri on the Prairie

Funny! We camped at Prairie Rose Lake State Park but realized that the "lake" had been drained. We had a little fun with this one.

Iowa is flat!

Goofing around

Youth pastors are never on vacation

Hiking in Argyle Lake State Park

Beautiful fall colors at Argyle Lake

Ditto

Austin in hiking pose

Deke and I enjoying a walk in the woods

Flying High

Each day the guys checked the flying conditions. If the weather was clear and the wind was within limits, they flew. They didn't get in as much flying as they had anticipated because of the cold and wind, but one place was especially cordial-Argyle Lake State Park, Illinois. At the entrance to the park, there was a huge meadow just right for take offs and landings. The guys asked permission of the camp hosts and soon received their approval. It was especially convenient for Amber and me as we could walk from our campsite to the airfield. We stayed 2 days there, and I have to say the guys acquired quite a following from people who were curious about this unusual way to fly.

Another place that was great for flying, even though the cold made it uncomfortable, was Harlan, Iowa. At the small airport there, we ran into a real flying character by the name of Olie (oh-lee) Pash (Posh). He was 85 years old and had been inducted into the Iowa Aviation Hall of Fame for his flying expertise over several decades as a stunt pilot. He was quite a character and kept the guys spellbound with his stories. His picture is shown here among some of the flying shots of this trip.

In Illinois, Austin had a discussion with an observer who said the guys were parasailing. No, Austin said- this is called paragliding. No, said the man, what you are doing is parasailing. The two had quite a discussion and in the end, Austin gave up and let the man call it what he wanted.

All in all, people everywhere were kind and accommodating. At one small airport in Red Oak, Iowa, a guy of about 35 years, jumped out of his pickup truck, sauntered up to the guys as they were landing and said, "That's the coolest thing I've ever seen!" He then proceeded to hang around while the guys packed up and even helped them stow their gear. Chris is a cattleman running 4,000 head of cattle on a feeder lot. He is also a fireman and does some scuba diving in his spare time. In his sparest of time, he is working on acquiring his pilot's license. I think Chris of Red Oak, Iowa, became a powered paraglider fan that day.

Cool shot of Deke flying in rather brisk wind

Deke in foreground, Austin trailing

Austin hanging around

When it was too windy to fly, the guys put on their harnesses and "kited"

Oops

Olie

The guys with Olie