VACATION TIME!

The vacation has begun!!! We made it to Orlando late last night... and boy did the jetlag hit hard! Three hour time difference from home and Shauna, Krista and I were all watching TV till after 2am. It's also muggy here and AC unit was SUPER loud and kept waking me up... but now that the sun is up, I'm energized to begin the big family vacation! Today will be Epcot! We also will arrive at the condo which will be WAY more roomy than the little hotel room we stayed in last night. Hopefully there will be wireless there too so we can stay connected...

So we start in the driveway... READY TO HIT THE AIRPORT

Megan strikes a pose after a fast lunch at PDX

I gotta say, we LOVED our experience on Continental! Friendly people and something to eat on both legs of the flight!

We're all a little LUNEY

The other night, Krista and I had fun standing out in our driveway watching the Lunar Eclipse. Well until we found ourselves freezing! It truly is amazing to see God's awesome creation in motion.

Bummer...

If you've read through my entries about my kids, you'll know that Emily's FAVORITE artist of all time is Toby Mac. Well... Toby was in town this past Friday and Emily couldn't go. She's been having ear issues and now loud noises can really make her ear hurt. Toby is certainly not known for his quiet shows, so Emily was forced to miss it. I, on the other hand, WAS able to go... well, actually, my radio station SPONSORED it so I really couldn't miss it, now could I? :-) The concert was the "Boomin' Beyond Measure" tour with Jeremy Camp and Matthew West. Since Emily couldn't make the show, I had Toby pose with a note at dinner.

Thanks Toby... you brightened a girl's day!

A Packed Birthday Weekend!

Shauna's dad (David) recently celebrated a birthday, and Shauna will celebrate her's in a couple weeks... so on the weekend we traveled to Boise for yet another birthday, we combined Shauna and David's birthday celebrations into one cake!

Shauna with younger brother, Rod, and Grandma B This is always billed as a "gereration photo" but I'd like to rename it the "chick pic". Even though Shauna's brother Rod is always available for the picture, he's never invited to be in it!

Here's this years "Chick Pic" :-)

Shauna and Grandma B

A Day In The Life Of ... MOM!

It just doesn't seem like 30 years could have passed since we surprised Mom on her 40th birthday! But 30 years HAVE passed and on February 9th my sweet Mom celebrated her 70th. We all gathered in Boise to celebrate. There was a fair amount of food, drink, laughter and fellowship. We are blessed beyond words to have been able to spend the weekend with her and our Boise family.

Mom with 6 of her 8 grandchildren!

Pretty awesome to see mom show up to the party in the dress she wore on the day Shauna and I got married!

One of the highlights was listening to Uncle Art (Mom's older brother) read emails from family in Germany who sent their birthday greetings. His style of reading and storytelling leaves Garrison Keillor in the dust.

Dad's mission... the birthday cake to end all birthday cakes...Mission ACCOMPLISHED!

Be good on I-84!

I don't know why... but for some silly reason Oregon still thinks 65 MPH is fast enough! Why? I love crossing the state border into Idaho where highway speeds are 75 MPH.

And hey... you NEVER see trucks actually going 55MPH!

If you're caught, it'll cost ya!

Shauna's in command of this stretch of the trip...

Uh oh... breaker breaker good buddy, there's a Smokie taking pictures at milepost 159!

HA! Shauna slowed down just in time... Or maybe she already had the cruise control locked in just a teenie tiny bit above 65!

Okay... back to looking at the lovely estates along I-84... lovely huh?

SUPER TUESDAY!!!

I thought this was timely for today... enjoy!

...dave

While walking down the street one day a US senator is tragically hit by a truck
and dies.

His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.

"Welcome to heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a
problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not
sure what to do with you."

"No problem, just let me in," says the man.

"Well, I'd like to, but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you
spend one day in hell and one in heaven. Then you can choose where to spend
eternity."

"Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in heaven," says the senator.

"I'm sorry, but we have our rules."

And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down,
down to hell. The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf
course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his
friends and other politicians who had worked with him.

Everyone is very happy and in evening dress. They run to greet him, shake his
hand, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the
expense of the people.

They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster, caviar and
champagne.

Also present is the devil, who really is a very friendly guy who has a good time
dancing and telling jokes. They are having such a good time that before he
realizes it, it is time to go.

Everyone gives him a hearty farewell and waves while the elevator rises...

The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens on heaven where St. Peter is
waiting for him.

"Now it's time to visit heaven."

So, 24 hours pass with the senator joining a group of contented souls moving
from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and,
before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.

"Well, then, you've spent a day in hell and another in heaven. Now choose your
eternity."

The senator reflects for a minute, then he answers: "Well, I would never have
said it before, I mean heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better
off in hell."

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to hell.

Now the doors of the elevator open and he's in the middle of a barren land
covered with waste and garbage.

He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in
black bags as more trash falls from above.

The devil comes over to him and puts his arm around his shoulder. "I don't
understand," stammers the senator. "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf
course and clubhouse, and we ate lobster and caviar, drank champagne, and danced
and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and my
friends look miserable. What happened?"


The devil looks at him, smiles and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning......
Today you voted ."

After 18 years...

I remember knowing couples at church who had been married for 15+ years and compared to the 2 or 3 years Shauna and I had been married, that seemed SO far away. January we celebrated anniversary #18! Time has certainly gone by quickly. In some respects living in our beautiful little home in Boise on Siesta Way next door to Brian and Linda seems only yesterday... but last time we drove by it felt like we'd been gone a long time.

So for our anniversary, we left for a long weekend at the coast and stayed at our favorite spot in Cannon Beach, the Tolovana Inn. A stormy weekend for sure! The ocean waves were literally crashing just below our balcony! But it was fun to just get away... something we probably don't do enough of. Just hanging out together made the perfect weekend. On the way home, we hit a HUGE snow storm (VERY unusual for the coast!) and the highway was soon covered in snow. It reminded us so much of our years in Idaho. So did the moment when we stopped to help a poor guy and his dog get unstuck from the snow bank he spun his truck into! It reminded me of the times others helped to get my old 1966 Datsun pick-up unstuck from time to time... minus the dog.

This is where we like to call home as often as possible!



Look at these waves! They were spectacular in person and just outside our door!

And this was the storm we drove home in! If you click the image to enlarge it, you'll see that 'ol Ford off to the side... sorry, no photo of the dog.

Happy Groundhog SNOW Day!!!

Well, it's official. Punxsutawney Phil did indeed see his shadow today and has forecast 6 more weeks of winter. To prove good old "P-Phil" right, I snapped these pics just moments ago! The snow is coming down hard... the most we've had in our hood all year. Mom's happy its a Saturday to see me HOME to enjoy it, and also that its not coming on a day that would cause yet another school closure. I best be gettin' off the computer to go watch the neighborhood come to life with children. As I look out the window, Megan is on her back making snow angels... IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET! Don't worry, our street gets VERY little traffic. :-)

Beyond Blessed

I hit my 40th birthday last year. The hair has a new natural tint, the facial hair is turning silver, but who cares? When I look at the world around me and the people I've met along the way, I consider my great marriage, 3 awesome kids, a healthy life and a God who loves me in spite of myself... it doesn't get much better.

Shauna...

I don't know how she does it, but this woman is a wife, a mom, a house cleaner, cook, and helps run our coffee house all at the same time. Putting up with me for the past 18+ years should fetch her some great reward, for sure. Tonight she and Krista are having a fun night shopping at the Lloyd Center Mall in Portland. Hmmm... and today was payday. Coincidence? I think not.

We had a blast at Shauna's 20 year reunion last year. Here she is with Debbie who she grew up with since grade school, who was also a bridesmaid in our wedding, and now lives close by us here in Oregon. It was said they were inseperable in school and now 500 miles from Boise, they're still close... and not just in proximity!

Sometimes you just need a break, right? No husband, no kids, plus two awesome girlfriends from Boise and one mai tai... sounds like the ultimate break to me! Um honey? Forget the sunblock again???

Shauna and Janice

Shauna and Lisa

Megan...

Megan and I have special connection... she and I both have the distinction of being the clowns in the family. (For sake of clarity, my Uncle Tim is a professional clown www.timotheclown.com and we by no means hold our clowning to the same standard. There's one TRUE clown in the family... we're mini-clowns without the make-up!) She made me laugh last weekend when we were trying to get the whole house clean before MOM arrived home from a weekend trip to Boise. I told her, "Megan, I just want you to focus on getting your room clean." She came back a little while later and was a bit frustrated. "Dad, I'm trying to get my room clean, but I just can't focus! I don't know how to focus. So I'm having a hard time cleaning my room. How do you focus, anyway?"

Emily... The Nashville Connection

This April, it will be 11 years that I became a member of The Gospel Music Association. It was also then that I'd be attending my first convention in Nashville. Emily delayed that trip! She was two weeks past due arriving to this world and I had to blow off the trip. Now almost every year I have to miss her birthday because of my yearly trip to Nashville to hang with Christian Music's brightest stars and my fellow radio broadcasters. I was able to make it up to Emily last year, though. I was having dinner with her favorite artist of all time, Toby Mac, when I asked if he wouldn't mind calling Emily to wish her Happy Birthday. You just can't buy your daughter a gift like that at Toys 'R Us! I was the coolest dad in the hood for at least 2 whole weeks!

Oh... and this would be her boy Toby

Krista...

Its amazing how fast time goes by, and before you know it you go from being first time parents to parents of a teenager! Krista is a nut about just about any animal or critter you can think of. Well, except for spiders. She also ROCKS in the kitchen! Next time you come by, ask for her amazing stir fry! Her cookies are pretty awesome too...