Tuesday June 29, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

This morning Gena and Alec headed out in the Sienna towards Hoodsport, Washington to visit her grandparents for a couple of days. We regret that we aren't able to make a longer or full-family visit northwards, but our schedule has been amazingly full here in Portland. She'll be heading back here on Thursday morning. We decided that she should take Alec, since his great-grandparents left quite an impression on him after our visit last fall. I stay behind with Mika & Caedmon.

The rest of the day is a blur of making lunches & dinners and keeping the kids occupied in various ways while trying to get a little bit of work done. I also had the excitement of deciphering the trash/recycling process soas to get all of the proper containers curbside for emptying in the morning. Fortunately, the directions are plastered on top of the disposal containers so it wasn't too difficult.

Monday June 28, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Today is four months to the day since Gena and I drove off from Camarillo, California. Hard to believe that we've been nomads since then. Blessed with friends & family around the country who have opened their schedules and homes to us for visits. Blessed to see so much of our beautiful country. Blessed to have time to clear our minds and hearts, readying ourselves for whatever comes next in the ongoing Adventure that is Life.

We didn't celebrate with any major activities. The ladies & kids began the process of making freezer jam - a jam that requires no cooking of the actual fruit. It's something that Gena has enjoyed from her maternal grandmother for many years, and has always wanted to try herself. So, armed with several pounds of berries, they began the process of cleaning, cutting, and then mashing the fruit to prepare it for jam-iciousness.

They realized quickly that they had far more berries than they actually needed or wanted to make jam out of. Too many berries. I made multiple runs to the grocery stores to deplete their supply of pectin, a plant-based thickening agent that is the key to many jams and jellies. In the end, they probably only got half of the strawberries made into jam, and none of the rasberries. Even still, they had close to 10 small containers of various sizes and shapes filled with the gooey goodness. Gwen took the bulk of it, Gena will take some of it to her grandparents tomorrow, and I kept one here. There will be plenty more very soon!

Gwen & Amba left mid-afternoon for the drive back to Bend. The plan at this point is to stop in for a few days and visit with them and their husband/father Greg as we begin our final descent into the cauldron that will be the desert southwest in July.

The rest of the evening was spent doing laundry, picking up the place, and catching our breaths. A good day.

Sunday June 27, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Low key day. Gena & Gwen went downtown to do some shopping. Gena's not prone to bouts of shopping fever, but knowledge that we have a very limited amount of transport space these days further reduces the possibility that she'll go on a shopping spree. They were gone most of the afternoon while I sat on the children. Literally. Most of them survived.

That's a good day, right?

Saturday June 26, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Gena, Gwen, and the kids all headed out this morning for berry picking, while I opted to stay here and allow the women-folk much needed conversational and bonding time. They returned with a ton more strawberries and rasberries, having gone to a different farm on Sauvie Island this time.

We were fortunate that one of Doug's associates was able to come over Saturday evening to work on the plumbing problem. I was relieved that it wasn't something simple or stupid that I'd just overlooked - always a possibility with plumbing. In the end, he spent two hours snaking the main kitchen drain line all the way down through the foundation and probably darn close to the main sewer line hookup. Although there was no moment when he clearly realized what the problem was, the important thing is that at the end of all that work, the drain was working fine.

Friday June 25, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Busy day today. We're preparing for a visit from Gena's friend Gwen and her daughter Amba, driving from Bend, OR this evening. But prior to that, we had the opportunity to gather with old friends from Arizona days - Jeff and his wife Manchu and their daughter Charlotte. We met Jeff and Manchu through Gena's directorship of International Friendship House. Jeff came to faith during his time there, and he moved to Portland about five years ago, married, and they now have a two-year old daughter. It's fun to get to connect with another piece of our history.

We caravaned with them to Sauvie Island, just outside of Portland proper. It's an island in the middle of the Columbia River, basically, and is primarily given over to agriculture. We went to a farm they were familiar with to pick strawberries and a few random rasberries. The weather was cooperative - warm but overcast. The kids had a blast looking for strawberries. They enjoyed searching for good ones more than picking them. But they really were drawn to picking rasberries - which was unfortunate since the vast majority of them were not ripe. But we got a few.

Afterwards, we went closer to downtown Portland to Trendy Third St. NE. Lots of little shops and restaurants. They wanted to take us to lunch at a sushi place where the food comes by in little dishes on a conveyor belt. As in Japan, you just take plates of food off the conveyor belt as they come by and suit your fancy. Each food item is on a colored plate, and the colored plate lets you know how much that particular dish is. At the end, they count your colored plates and derive your total. Pretty cool.

Amazingly enough, the kids really enjoyed themselves, particularly Alec. He's still much inspired by the Travel Channel's Man vs. Food guy. He tried several brand new dishes based solely on how they looked. He tried a sesame seed dough-ball with what I suspect was a sweet bean paste in the middle. He tried a barbecued chicken on skewers. He even tried a California roll, which he wasn't very fond of at all. I was very impressed with what he was willing to try, however!

Afterwards we had gelato, which the kids were very happy about. What a great morning and early afternoon!

Then it was 'home' to clean and prepare for guests. And to discover, to our horror, that the kitchen sink was not draining. We hadn't done anything odd, but all of a sudden it was backing up. It's an awful feeling when something goes wrong at someone else's place when you're staying there. You can know in your heart that it wasn't anything you did, but there's always that dread that it will be attributed to your stupidity or carelessness somehow.

We bought a plunger, I disassembled the plumbing underneath the sink. All to no avail. It's a great way to greet your guests, in the midst of plunging a kitchen sink. Gwen and Amba made it safely over the mountains, and soon it was bedtime.

Thursday June 24, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Our first day solo in Portland. Kind of strange to be knocking around another person's house while they're not there. There's a sense of duty and obligation in keeping up the adopted routines and rituals, in trying to make sure that when they return, they aren't regretful that you were there.

The morning was spent in the usual necessities of school and various meals and squeezing in some work and laundry. But the highlight of the day was the late afternoon. We headed to one of our favorite local places here in Northeast Portland - McMeniman's Kennedy School. We had stopped there for a celebratory snack after picking me up from the airport on Monday, and noticed that they were playing How to Train Your Dragon. Since the kids had been excited about the movie through t-shirts and Happy Meal toys for several months now, they were very interested as to whether we were going to see the movie.

I told them it was pointless until they had their own dragon.

So today we just told them that we had a surprise for them, and we loaded up the van and drove the mile to the former school building. Alec figured it out first, and the others quickly caught on.

We had seen the movie Up here last fall when we visited. We knew it had a *very* comfortable and child-friendly theater (and only $3 per ticket!), and that you could order pizza and have it delivered to you in the theater so you could eat while you watched. Pretty cool, eh? The seats are mostly couches and love seats and recliners interspersed with tables to put your food on. So we ordered a pepperoni pizza and settled in. We had arrived about an hour early, so the bulk of our eating was done before the movie started - good planning on our part!

The kids had a blast. Alec was thoroughly engrossed in the movie, particularly excited by the dragon chases and fire spitting and other such good stuff. They were all plenty tired by the time we got home, and were quickly asleep. A very fun day!

Wednesday June 23, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

I'm on edge. Ancy. Wanting to know what is next and when. Wanting to plan, to arrange, to set in order whatever needs planning, arranging, order. The long months of waiting and tentativeness have taken a certain toll, and I'm tired of paying that toll. As such, I've been a little grumpy since I got back from Santa Barbara Monday. Snappy, less patient. I want to know what's going to happen and when, and that's not my place, yet. So I pray for additional patience - and indulgence from my family!

Nothing too extraordinary today. We made Mexican food for dinner since Doni had some avocados and a recipe for a modified guacamole she wanted to make. I made a pitcher of margaritas to go along with it.

Tonight I took Doug & Doni to the airport so that they can start their summer vacation. They're headed to the east coast to visit Doug's mother & sister, as well as Doug & Doni's daughter Emily. We visited all these folks back in early April, so we're excited for the fun times we know are in store for them.

Gena and I were able to talk for a while after I got back from the airport (a much longer trip, since I got lost on the way back and ended up taking a rather extended route home!). It was good to be able to think through and articulate the source of my grouchiness. I'm grateful for the way we're able to talk together, whether things are good or stressful. We know that all of us are ready for things to come to a conclusion, to have a space and a place to just be a family again. We've been so blessed for so long by friends and relatives around the country. It's hard to believe how much we've seen in visiting with over 30 different friends/relatives.

We realized that we haven't taken any pictures of our time in Portland with Doug & Doni, so Gena hurriedly snapped photos. In the ongoing ping pong war, Doug and I have drawn to more of an even status. He crushed me last week the first time we played. I beat him Monday when we rematched. And today, in the tie-breaker, we played best of five and I edged him out in the fifth game to take the title. Yes, victory is sweet.

Tuesday June 22, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Back to the former routine. Kids doing school work, me doing work-work. Playing and laughing and wondering about the future. Nice to be done with the weekend. It feels like it was a long time coming.

Monday June 21, 2010 - Camarillo, California to Portland, Oregon

I'd have an extra hour to kill at the Burbank airport, over and above the recommended two-hour pre-flight time window. Normally this isn't too big a deal, but Burbank is a *very* small airport. Anyone who flies in and out of Southern California regularly is likely to agree that this makes it one of the best airports in the area. Parking is easy, and picking up and dropping off someone is pretty simple. But the downside is that they don't have much in the way of amenities - the major food options being about a 1/4 mile hike actually out of the airport grounds proper.

Fortunately, I found out that the one restaurant in the airport did have wi-fi available, and I had an AT&T account which would work there. Hallelujah! At least I could pass the time a little easier!

My flight back (and up) was on a very small airplane called a Bombadier, if I remember correctly. Two seats on each side of an aisle. Pretty cramped. This time I was in the very last row smashed up against the cargo wall. Behind me I could make out the barking of an unhappy dog. It wasn't a comfortable flight, but it was only a couple of hours.

The kids were happy to see me when I got back - much excitement and enthusiasm. That evening we celebrated Father's Day with cards from the kids. It's good to be a family, and I am richly blessed no matter what the future holds for us.

Sunday June 20, 2010 - Santa Barbara, California

This morning it was my pleasure to preach the Word of God during the congregation's worship service. It has been almost four months since I last preached, yet the steps involved in preparing didn't seem to be too rusty. The texts were interesting in that they all spoke very vividly of change - the change and absolute reversal possible only through the work of God. Change that is not only possible, but inevitable - change that is a process every day of our lives, and finished only when we are brought together to be with God eternally. Which leads many folks to assume that we don't really need to expect or be concerned with the changes here and now - when in fact that's very much what we're supposed to be concerned about and contributing towards.

Jesus & the demoniac in Luke 8. Paul's famous assertions about the very fabric of reality being rewoven in the latter part of Galatians 3 and the first few verses of Galatians 4. Powerful passages. A great message of hope for a congregation in search of a pastor, and a pastor in search of a congregation.

After worship there was about an hour of question and answer time. I fielded questions from the general membership about everything ranging from my policy on communion to how I would reach out to the community of Santa Barbara. Good people. Good questions. This was followed by the traditional Lutheran pot luck. If you want Lutherans to stick around for pretty much anything, the promise of food at the end of it certainly doesn't hurt your chances of success!

The drive back to Camarillo afterwards was awful. Yesterday's drives had been leisurely and gorgeous. Today it was stop-and-go traffic literally the whole 40 miles. It took well over an hour - probably close to 90 minutes - to make the trip. Note to self for the future!

I wrapped up my last full day in Southern California enjoying food and wine with friends at Lewis' house, and then a few hours of fellowship with Jake at his house. I was dismayed to find out that the latest possible train out of Camarillo to take me back to the Burbank airport was still an hour earlier than I would have liked. There would be no final leisurely breakfast with Lewis, just a rush to get up, drop off the car again, and get to the station by 7:45am, leaving me with an extra hour to kill at the airport. Oh well. A relatively minor tribulation!

Saturday June 19, 2010 - Santa Barbara, California

Santa Barbara is a pleasant 40-minute drive or so to the north of Camarillo. The 101 winds quickly from Camarillo into Oxnard and almost indistinguisably into Ventura. Then there's suddenly very little but the ocean on the left and the brown hills on the right. There are several small beach communities that come and go quickly before arriving in Santa Barbara proper. Carpinteria. Summerland. Montecito.

Saturday was meeting day. First the elders. Then lunch with the praise team. Finally a mid-afternoon meeting with the Call committee. I was pretty drained by the end of it all. The drive back down the coast was beautiful. Early evening and the sun was beginning the slow descent into the Pacific. Hordes of people were on the beaches and dotting the surf, their cars and RVs lining the narrow parking strip next to the freeway. License plates from around the country shared the freeway.

In our time in California we adopted the pattern of not really doing much or going anywhere during the summer. Everyone in the world wants to be in Southern California in the summer, it seems. And since the weather is pretty steady all year, there are other times when we can enjoy the local pleasures without having to compete with tourists. I'm not sure that I had driven this stretch of the coast during June before. So beautiful. There are certainly worse places in the world one could want to live, that's for sure. I wonder how big a factor that should be in the decisions that lie ahead in the next few weeks?

Friday June 18, 2010 - Camarillo, California

I had flown down in advance of the weekend as I wasn't sure what sorts of meetings or when this congregation might wish to have with me. Turns out that nothing is scheduled until Saturday, allowing me a day to run errands and take care of miscellaneous necessities.

After a delicious home-cooked pancake breakfast with Lewis, I headed out. Hair cut. Purchase a new belt & a pair of socks. Get the car washed off. Lunch with Jake. Slipping in a few minutes of work at the local coffee shop.

I was back to Lewis' by 4pm, and we left at 4:30pm to pick up Ken, another former parishioner, en route to a gathering of former friends and congregants at Jim & Dianne's house.

By the end of the evening there were 30+ people gathered at their home, a dozen or so vehicles in their long gated driveway. Lots of hugs and smiles as people reconnected and caught up with me, but moreso with one another. I think it was the first time that a large contingent of my former members had gotten together for several months. Some of them are now members at the other LCMS congregation in town. Others are experimenting with other worship venues. Others are still struggling to find a place where they feel comfortable.

We gorged ourselves on grilled chicken, smoked salmon, potato salad and cookies and all other manner of delicacies. Wine flowed and a good time was had by all. There are many hopes and dreams about what the future may hold for me and my family. It will be interesting to see what God has in mind...and I trust I'll have a better grasp on that by the time the weekend is over.

Thursday June 17, 2010 - Portland, Oregon to Camarillo, California

For the first time since our journey began on February 28, Gena and I will be separated for an extended period of time. Our kids went out to Phoenix several days before us in February to give us time to clean the house and finalize the packing and do all the last minute things that are vital but incredibly boring to kids. But the two of us have been together non-stop. And this is the second time during our journey that I will be traveling by airplane instead of mini-van. Maybe Gena will have some things she'll want to fill you in on about the family's doings during the next few days. Otherwise, all I can say is what I've been doing.

I flew from Portland to the Burbank Airport. Then I was able to take a Metrolink/Amtrak train from the Burbank Airport to Camarillo. I was met at the station by my friend Jake, because my car has been stored at his house for the last four months. His house, incidentally, used to be our house. Through a fortuitous set of events, they were able to move in after we moved out, ensuring our landlord had good, continuous renters.

It was only moderately surreal to be back in Camarillo - back even in our former home. It seems as though so much more time has passed than nearly four months.

After 30 minutes or so chatting with Jake and his wife, I headed out in my car for our friend Lewis' house. It was odd to be driving something other than the Toyota Sienna mini-van! While I'm impressed with the Sienna's power, having that same power in a smaller and lighter vehicle was, well, invigorating.

Lewis had dinner ready and waiting when I arrived. After we finished, we drove up to my former church buildings. He showed me the inside where, indeed, the congregation who had purchased the property had completely gutted the interior. The beautiful blues and greens that had greeted me almost exactly three years ago on my first visit were all but gone. Gone was the carpeting, the pews, the altar area, the choir loft - anything that wasn't concrete or brick or glass was gone.

It was an oddly detached feeling, observing it all. I ached for my former parishioners who had lost a beloved place of worship. But it was also confirmation. A building is just a building. It can be changed around. It can be destroyed either accidentally or intentionally. It's nature is transitory - unlike the Church proper, the men and women and children past, present, and future who share a common faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. Hearing the echoes return over the cold concrete was a bitter reminder of what we lose when we prioritize where we worship, or even how we worship. It was also a very direct reminder of what happens when the body of Christ ceases to function as a body - integrated, fully connected and involved. We all have gifts that we bring to the body, and we all have responsibilities that we can't simply choose to ignore or defer to others. Each of us is completely unique, irreplaceable, and brought into a particular instance of the body at a particular point in history for a particular purpose. When we abdicate, the body that is the local community & congregation suffers. Sometimes, to the point of death.

Later that night I took my favorite drive down the 101, through the surreality that is Malibu and on to the outskirts of Santa Monica. It was beautiful, as always. The moon was out, allowing the ocean & waves to drift in and out of existence as they caught and absorbed or reflected that silvery light. The smell of the salt air was as intoxicating as it has been since my youth and first experiences with the ocean.

Wednesday June 16, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Another pretty quiet day. Laundry and preparations for my departure tomorrow. Each night as the kids are tucked into bed, Alec & Caedmon are more and more asking when we'll be in our 'new house'. It's clear that everyone is getting ready for our nomadic life to come to an end and a more established life to take hold again. I suppose that's only natural. I wish I had a better answer for them, but I give them the only answer I've been given - When Jesus shows us where to live.

Tuesday June 15, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Another chilly and rainy day. Chillier and rainier than yesterday - which is an observation, not a complaint! We know our days will be getting hotter all too soon. More school, more work. The kids have had fun in Doug & Doni's hot tub. The temperature has been turned way down until it's lukewarm instead of hot. They think it's a grand time indeed.

Tonight we cooked Malaysian fish curry, one of our favorite dishes. It didn't turn out the way it usually does though, and we're not sure why. Perhaps a different chicken stock. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't the way it normally tastes. It's always disappointing when that happens.

Meetings are getting set up (finally!) with different groups from the congregation in Santa Barbara I'm meeting with this weekend. I just wish it were here already!

Monday June 14, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

It feels a bit like it did in the beginning of all this, when we were in Phoenix. The days come and go and the incidents are minor and seem hardly worth talking about. We're very blessed to have some time up here in the Northwest. We're blessed to have gracious and hospitable hosts. We're blessed that it's been rainy and in the low to mid-60's the last few days. Our cup runneth over, yet beyond that, the details of it all are rather lackluster compared to our last few months.

The kids are working on school again - a slow start after a week off. They'll get into the swing of it again, but it takes a few days to work the kinks out. I do some work in preparation for my trip this weekend to Santa Barbara as well as work on the class I'm teaching. I was depressed to have to turn down the possibility of teaching a class for Concordia Irvine this fall, since it would have required me to be on campus part of the time and I don't know if we'll be in the area or not. It was really hard to turn down the offer. But I pray that there will be future opportunities.

Sunday June 13, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

Another round of pancakes this morning - this time blueberry and banana. Much better tasting than it might sound! Then it was off to church - this time to Imago Dei, a famous congregation here in Portland. It was a pretty impressive experience - non-Lutheran-ness aside. The pastor gave a really powerful and evocative sermon based on the importance of remembering what God has already done in our lives.

Lunch was a feast. Doug & Doni are foodies, so mealtimes are always exciting. Today it was grilled lamb that had been marinated in yogurt & rosemary, along with freshly made tzatziki sauce and pitas from scratch. My mouth has yet to really settle down from that menu! Good conversation about the morning's worship experience over cocktails in the afternoon, wrapped up by popcorn for the kids and a showing of The Princess Bride, which they seemed to really enjoy.

The weather has brightened up into sunny goodness with Saturday's high around 80 and the rest of the week predicted in the low 70's. It's nice after several weeks of cooler temperatures and lots of clouds and rain. I guess it really is summer after all.

Saturday June 12, 2010 - Portland, Oregon

A very relaxing day today. The kids had fun making blueberry & chocolate chip pancakes. I spent a few hours working and preparing for the upcoming week, which will include a flight to Santa Barbara and back to visit a congregation that I am in the Call discussion process with. For dinner we had grilled chicken & corn on the cob. I made my homemade margaritas which turned out very nice. Additionally, I learned a new skill in the process - making my own Rose's Lime Juice from simple syrup and fresh squeezed limes. The taste was much milder than Rose's - I think I'm hooked.

Friday June 11, 2010 - Kennewick, Washington to Portland, Oregon

Pendleton, Oregon has been special to Gena and I since our honeymoon. On our first massive road-trip together (Phoenix to Vancouver Island, Canada & back), we stopped in Pendleton and visited the factory and purchased a nice woolen blanket. We stopped in Pendleton again in 2005, on our big road trip from St. Louis to Washington state and back again, picking up another wool blanket. When we added whiskey to our family last year (the dog - the drink has been part of our family for much longer!), she decided that the two wool blankets were her chew toy. I was heartbroken when she mangled both blankets.

So, almost 10 years after our wedding and first visit to Pendleton, we were stopping again. In 2000 we had no kids. In 2005 Alec was 3 and Mika was just six months old - Caedmon didn't exist yet. Now the kids are all present and accounted for and frighteningly larger. We found two beautiful wool blankets to replace the two that were eaten by Whiskey. And Gena was smugly happy to prove that her memory had been correct, and that the blankets available at the mill's 'blanket outlet' were probably half the price or less of the same blankets advertised in their glossy catalogs. I have to figure out how to best pack these for the remainder of our trip, but we're both excited to have this souvenir of our trip.

Then it was a three-mile drive westward on I-84 to Portland. I realized that we had been in I-84 before on our journey - though on the entire opposite side of the country! We had taken that highway from eastern Pennsylvania on our way to Boston -nearly two months ago! This stretch of interstate was familiar to us, having traveled it several times over the past decade. The Columbia River is truly impressive as it churns alongside the interstate, channeled through two dams less than 100 miles east of Portland.

Today was the first completely sunny and rain-free day we've had for at least a week if not longer. I kinda miss the rain, but I suppose now that we've reached nearly the middle of June, I have to resign myself that being back west, things are going to be sunny and hot and there's no way around it.

We arrived in time to settle in and have a drink with Doug & Doni before I headed out with them to the book club meeting. The meeting was nice - great people enjoying fellowship and food and wine. I continue to wonder the best way for a group to talk about a book. Should it be guided and directed somewhat, or free-flow and open to wherever and whatever anyone wants to say about the book? This one was very free-flow. There were folks who loved the book, those who didn't care for it as much, and those who hadn't finished it - all of which makes for challenging discussion environment! But it was good to hear the questions people had - why this or that person or event was important, what made sense and what confused them. Reading is such a powerful activity, but it can also be an overwhelming one.

The experience further confirmed for me that I need to definitely organize this sort of thing wherever we end up living and working next. Perhaps it's the teacher in me, or maybe it's just the reader in me - I love the idea of reading with others and talking about the impacts what we read can have on us.

Thursday June 10, 2010 - Columbia Falls, Montana to Kennewick, Washington

I received word from Gena's aunt & uncle in Portland that they were having a book club meeting Friday night. Not necessarily a big deal, except that they were meeting to discuss a book I had recommended to Doug & Doni back in September (or was it November?) - A Canticle for Leibowitz. They had read it, loved it, talked their book club into reading it, and were meeting to discuss it and wondered if we could arrive by Friday afternoon instead of Saturday?

We decided that we could do this. We got ready Thursday morning and headed back to Glacier for one last drive. It was raining steadily, and it didn't stop when we entered the park. We knew we could only drive 17 miles in, as the passes weren't opened yet. What we had discovered earlier in the morning was that, though the published opening date for the passes was June 18, in reality rangers were telling people it probably wouldn't be until well into July. The constant rain that we had been encountering ever since western Wyoming had been snow in the mountains of Glacier and elsewhere. The result was reports of 100-ft high snow drifts across the highway, delaying the opening of the pass considerably.

We wanted to drive in on the west side though to try and do a short hike that our friend Fred had recommended. However, half-way into the 17-mile drive, we realized that with it raining steadily, we weren't going to do the hike, and we might as well turn around. So we did. We grabbed lunch at the cafe we had eaten at the night before and hit the road. We continued west on highway 2, which oddly enough shoots further north into Idaho, just a few miles from the Canadian border, before dropping back down southwards directly into Spokane, Washington.

The drive was beautiful - lots of pine trees the whole way, rolling mountains, and plenty of rivers and lakes to watch for long stretches of time. I've always heard that northern Idaho is pretty, now I've seen some of it and it's true.

We managed to get all the way to Kennewick, Washington, where we stopped for the night. The goal had been to get as far south in Washington as possible so that we could get up early, drive to Pendleton, Oregon, and still get to Portland in time for the Friday evening book club. It was a long day - made longer by the gaining of a final hour on our westward journey across the country. We were now officially back on Pacific time for the first time in three-and-a-half months. It felt good. But so did sleep!

Wednesday June 9, 2010 - St. Mary, Montana to Columbia Falls, Montana

Dawn was a welcome sight after a night of being very cold. Thankfully the kids slept like rocks. They enjoyed their breakfast of miniature sugar-coated cold cereal immensely. Gena and I were grateful for large cups of tea and showers. We then headed out to explore a bit more.

The eastern side of Glacier has two different entrances. We went to both, and discovered that the park isn't really open in earnest yet. There's one main drive from the east to the west side of the park called the Going-to-the-Sun Road - and we learned that it's not open yet. Not until next Friday, specifically.

Not only that, all of the park amenities were pretty much not operating yet. It rained all morning, and the mountain peaks were shrouded in mist and clouds during our drive. It was ghostly and silent and beautiful. It was also really hard to actually see any of the scenery, which was a bit frustrating.

It was still raining after lunch when Gena and I made the executive decision to cut short our stay on the east side of Glacier and drive around to the more populous west side. While the kids played in the van we broke down camp in about 30 minutes. Not being able to cook anything besides hot dogs, the cold weather, and the rain were enough to convince us to move along our trip a little. We were blessed - and surprised - that the KOA refunded our nightly fee. So, packed up somewhat haphazzardly, we set out.

Highway 2 circles around the southern side of the park. We stopped at a less well-traveled entrance called Two Medicine. There was a very short hike that we took the kids on to a waterfall. Once again, the kids were ecstatic to be able to throw rocks into water. The sun appeared long enough to take some pictures, and then we were on our way again.

The drive around to the west side of Glacier was impressive. While the eastern side is more rugged - bare rock faces painted with snow driving emphatically into the sky - the west side is more wooded and lush, full of waterfalls, the winding South Fork River swelling and shrinking beside the highway. We probably wouldn't have made that drive if the pass through the park had been open, so I'm grateful for the chain of events that allowed us to experience that beautiful drive along highway 2.

We arrived in Columbia Falls, MT in the evening, found a place to stay, had a delightful dinner in a small cafe, and were glad for our decision. It's funny how even in the midst of great uncertainty and un-structuredness, we are so tightly bound to expectations. With the entire country in our rear-view mirror and uncertain days stretched out before us, we struggled with the idea of throwing in the towel from what we had arbitrarily decided we would do (spend two nights camping on the east side of Glacier). No wonder we cling so tightly to our routines and ways of doing things when the uncertainty of life is far more disguised. What a wonderful (and silly!) reminder of the freedom we have in letting go of what we think ought to be, and allowing ourselves to experience more actually the grace of a God that has opened our lives up to all sorts of possibilities, if we would only accept not just His grace, but His peace as well.

Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized in Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

St. Paul - Galatians 3:23-29

Tuesday June 8, 2010 - Helena, Montana to St. Mary, Montana

The rest of the drive to the top of Montana was relatively quiet and still beautiful. Lots of rolling hills, and eventually you see towards the west this line of pretty impressive looking mountains. We parallel them for quite some time before we finally turn firmly westward and run smack into them.

St. Mary, MT is on the eastern edge of Glacier National Park. We've read/been told that the eastern side of the park is the more pristine and undeveloped. This is a rather major understatement. We set up camp at another KOA. This one is neither as big or as nice as the one we camped in outside of Mt. Rushmore, but it provides all the things we really need. The young man who checked me in hailed from Ahwatukee, AZ - practically next door to the area of Phoenix suburbs where I had lived most of my life. Turns out he was an ASU student as well, which I thought was a pretty cool connection. It didn't get me any discounts, but it was interesting all the same.

I get a clearer idea of just how isolated we are, though, when I head into St. Mary to get some groceries for dinner. I had been excited to see that St. Mary had a grocery store, which meant a 1-mile drive rather than a 31-mile drive back down to Browning, MT. But my excitement was a bit premature. The grocery store had most of the basic necessities, but didn't have much of anything in terms of produce or meat. It had hot dogs though, which is what the kids were jumping up and down in anticipation of. But nothing else - except for bacon. Gena and I had hoped to do another buffalo foil packet sort of dinner for ourselves, but alas, this was not to be. Still, the kids enjoyed their hot dogs and marshmallows, and Gena and I made due with hopes of finding something better the next day.

We were happy that our campsite was fairly secluded, and also surrounded by aspen trees. We were hopeful that this would mean a less windy night for us, and we weren't mistaken. I don't think the wind stirred all night.

But this didn't mean that we slept any better.

All of our sleeping bags are rated for pretty cool nights - like 20 degree nights. Plenty fine for the low-40's temperatures that we would be facing here. Yet for some strange reason, Gena and I were freezing all night. And with us being cold, we worried about the kids. However, it was clear that the kids were sleeping like logs - very warm logs. Whatever cold issues we were facing were limited to Gena and I. Neither of us slept very well or very long, though we both discovered independently that if we pulled our sleeping bags over our heads, we managed to stay a little warmer. Once again, dawn couldn't come fast enough.

Monday June 7, 2010 - Jackson, Wyoming to Helena, Montana

We spent the morning doing laundry and cleaning the condo so it would be ready for it's next guests. A lot of good, focused effort before we hit the road. The drive would take us over the mountains into northeastern Idaho and then into Montana. The scenery was incredible.

Although we didn't find northeastern Idaho very compelling, Montana turned out to be another really beautiful state. Lots of rolling pasture lands that stretched on and on, giving a new definition to the concept of 'isolated'. We saw a beautiful rainbow near the metropolis of Ennis, Montana. We stopped here for our dinner. It was pretty awful as flavor/quality goes, but it was a great experience dining in this tiny cafe in this little town of roughly 800 people.

We have been trying to reach our friend Fred for almost a week now to schedule a get together here in Montana. In truth, he's the main reason we're heading up to Glacier National Park. For years he regaled us with tales of the beauty of Montana in general, and Glacier in particular. For years we've talked about how much fun it would be to lead a group of fellow Alleluia-ers up to Montana to have Fred show us his stomping grounds.

Yet for the past week, no response to the messages I've left him. Disconcerting. Through an amazing series of tiny Divine interventions, we finally make contact with Fred when we're about 30 minutes outside of Helena, where he spends half the year. Gena was able to talk with him for a couple of hours in our hotel lobby while I sat watch over our sleeping kids. Tragically, his work schedule was such that he wasn't able to show us around Helena or Glacier or anywhere else. In one of the running themes of our travels, we added this to the list of things to do 'next time we're in the area'. Fred gave Gena lots of pointers on Glacier though, which will hopefully prove to be helpful.

Sunday May 6, 2010 - Jackson, Wyoming

We are sad to think that this is our last day here. The week has flown by so quickly. We've been surrounded by such beauty.

We spend our last afternoon walking around Jackson's town square. Points of interest are the large deer-antler arches that grace the square's four corners. We stop for some ice cream at Moo's Gourmet Ice Cream - a very worthwhile stop. Completely and totally all natural ingredients - and some unusual ones at that. Alec & Mika stay with reliable standby flavor chocolate chip, while Caedmon opts for strawberry - which due to there being no artificial colorings, is a rather disconcerting shade of brown. But more delicious than any strawberry ice cream I've ever tasted. Gena and I whip out our snooty attire and enjoy a cabernet & chocolate treat - real chocolate & real red wine in a very nice pairing.

Saturday June 5, 2010 - Jackson, Wyoming

Another relatively light day. We did some school work and other necessary odds and ends. Alec is willing to read to Mika every now and then, which we think is awesome. He's been very excited to begin reading C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia, as he received several of the books from my folks for his birthday. Gena talked him into reading to Mika by allowing him to begin The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, even though he's not quite finished reading Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland.

Here's an interesting aside. We learned for the first time that there's a bit of a disagreement among literary scholars as to which book is properly the first book of The Chronicles of Narnia series. I encountered the books as a child with the first book being The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Alec's books start with The Magician's Nephew as the first book. I tend to side with those who disagree with this ordering, however, so Alec is starting with TLTWTW.

We met up with Lily again today for a brief hike. The kids had a blast - particularly in throwing rocks into the various stream crossings we encountered. Note to selves - if we want to inculcate a love of hiking in our kids, we just need to ensure that every hike involves water in some way and lots and lots of rocks.

Friday June 4, 2010 - Yellowstone National Park

We finally made it to Yellowstone National Park today. We didn't exactly get an early start, but we decided that it would be better to do it today rather than try again on Saturday. It was raining steadily the entire drive up and into the park. It took us about 2.5 hours to get to Old Faithful from Jackson. To say the scenery was impressive is a bit of an understatement. What impressed me the most, I think, were the various rivers and creeks that we crossed, filled with winter runoff. I don't think the park as a whole matches the Tetons in sheer stunning beauty, but that sounds like a harsher critique than it really is. Yellowstone is amazing, but in a different way - perhaps in the diversity of types of beauty. For us, that meant mainly the various thermal features of the southern part of the park.

We reached Old Faithful first, and having just missed the last eruption, grabbed a bite to eat. On the way back to watch Old Faithful, I was thrilled to see several yurts set up. I have no idea what they were for, but they clearly meant business. Since I have a strange attraction to yurts, I had to take a picture.

We went back out to watch, and were some of the first people to begin assembling - mostly because it was about 45 degrees and raining steadily. There was a park ranger who began giving a talk about the nature of the various thermal features in the park. He talked about what a geyser is and why it is and how Yellowstone has more of them than anywhere else in the world. I won't replicate all of his talk here - you can Google it if you're interested. Suffice to say, his talk kept us occupied and our minds off the cold and wet until Old Faithful finally decided to blow.

I'd be lying if I didn't say that I thought it was a little anticlimactic. But the kids were very impressed, and now we can say that we've seen Old Faithful do it's thing.

We went on to see the Midway Geyser Basin and Fountain Paint Pots. These were definitely cooler than Old Faithful itself, and the kids were just delirious with excitement at walking through the fog and mist or watching bubbling pools of water or mud. What an amazing world God has made!