Wednesday, July 11, 2018

7-11-18


AFRICA 2018 ... here we come!!!!
This Friday I'm getting on a plane for Africa. My niece, April is going with me. We will have 3 days together in Amsterdam following my a mission trip in Uganda for 10 days. We are super excited! Tom Eggum (above) is the director of Hope 4 Kids International. He has an amazing outreach with bringing clean water to remote villages through digging new water wells. There are many other projects they do and not just in Africa but all over the world. Check out the link to get a glimpse of Hope for Kids and what April and I will be up to. They also have a Facebook page.

Hope 4 Kids. Adorable children from Uganda.
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July 26 Bob will meet me in Rwanda to see our friends, Todd and Andria & their 4 kiddos. They have been living there for 8 years and started up City of Joy Rwanda. It too is quite a project and they are amazing folks bringing so much help and joy to children and families in Rwanda. Check out their link below and Facebook page too. I've known Todd since college when we worked as camp counselors together at Okobjoi Lutheran Bible Camp (Iowa).


City of Joy. A game of baseball. :-)
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August 2nd Bob and I will fly to Arusha, Tanzania. We'll meet Filbert and stay at House of Children. It's a very small orphanage in USA river. We look forward to learning about his heart for these children. Filbert is a local Tanzanian and we have been in contact only through Facebook and other social media. Look up House of Children on Facebook when you get a chance.
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The New Life Band. Arusha, Tanzania. 
We'll be meeting and hopefully hearing The New Life Band perform while in Tanzania. I've been in contact with James (the director). New Life Band has been around for 40 years and on their 1st trip to America (when they were a young band) they stayed at Okoboji Lutheran Bible Camp for 1 month. That's the camp I worked at!! It's also where my brother-in-law, Paul's parents were directors for many years. It was Connie and Jeanne who told us to look them up. On another note, this band will be performing in California (several concerts) near Bob's parents. Small world that Pat's friend will be hosting some of them at their house when they visit America again this September. We are excited to meet James and the band in TZ.

Check out Facebook and youtube to learn or hear more about The New Life Band from Arusha, TZ.
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Another stop will be to an orphanage for the disabled, blind and albino children. This amazing place is in Moshi, TZ. We will only have 1 day here but we want to visit because a local Scottsdale, AZ company (K2 Adventures) are the major supporters of this loving home for children.
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Come August 7th we'll be able to connect in person with Johnson!! He will be finishing up his final exams at college. Once done he'll have completed his 1st year at MWEKA College of Wildlife Management and Conservation. He is so excited to see us... and we are so excited to see our son! We'll get to meet his grandparents, see his village of Marangu and meet other relatives and friends. And on August 12th Johnson, Bob and I will be flying to Malaysia and Singapore for a week of touring. It will be his 1st flight, his 1st time out of the country of Tanzania and a lot of other firsts for him. It will be our first time to those countries as well. Bob and I are already thankful for our time together with Johnson, sightseeing and experiencing small adventures together in the weeks ahead. 

As you can imagine it's been a whirlwind arranging the big and small details (especially this week... things have been so busy). Flights, hotels, drivers, gifts, paperwork and so much more. My head is spinning... so much so that when I get on the plane this Friday I will be happy for the hours of uninterrupted downtime. LOL. :-) Thank you for your support, thoughts and prayers for our travels. I will not be updating the blog until I return at the end of August. Blessings to you from us. Xoxo.

Hakuna Matata.

7-10-18


Look how cute our nieces are at Sailing Camp in California.
Rose & Marie went with another friend and are having the time of their life. What great skills to learn. I want to go to sailing camp! I tried to download the videos of them sailing from Facebook but it didn't work. But these photos capture their big smiles & happiness!

GREAT job Rose & Marie! Bob and I are proud of you both. Now you can add sailing to your long list of talents! Xoxo

Tuesday, July 10, 2018

7-9-18

Bob's 2 mountain biking videos in Lake Tahoe.
Bob does great biking while videoing me on the Rim Trail until...

PS: Bob is ok... not a bruise or a scratch. :-)

Below is Bob's drone footage of The Flume Trail & Tunnel Creek.
It has a much better ending. Click on the link below...

Monday, July 9, 2018

7-8-18

3 pics from 3 rides in Lake Tahoe...
Flume Trail with Sand Harbor.
High Meadow Trail with Star Lake
Rim Trail with a sandy climb. See Bob?

7-7-18

We are back in Phoenix again. Spoiler alert... It's HOT here!
115 today. OUCH! :-/

A few pics from Tahoe to help me cope...
Beach Dog.
Patriotic Dog.
Coffee Dog.
Charmer Dog.
"Can I jump up on the bed now, please?"
Hot Dog.
"Can I go back to Tahoe now, please?!"

7-6-18


Bob standing before Bonsai Rock.
Olivia and I standing on Bonsai Rock.
Bob's drone video... so awesome!!
Such a pretty place.
Love Lake Tahoe.

7-5-18

7/29: The day after our 3 day trek on the PCT the 5 of us got our ducks in a row...
Rich & Heather left Lake Tahoe and drove south to Mammoth Lakes. They have another week of hiking Mt. Whitney, Clouds Rest, and 1/2 Dome in Yosemite National Park. Bob, Olivia, and I grabbed coffee before walking along Kiva Beach.
Above pics shows our ducks in a row with Mt. Tallac in the back.
Kiva Beach morning.
Olivia divided.
California or Nevada?
Standing on State Line.
Sugar Pinecone Jackpot.
Olivia flies back to Phoenix this evening so the 3 of us packed in a few activities before driving to the Reno Airport. Hunting for Sugar Pine cones was a success. Olivia was excited to take them home to give her daughter.
A short hike up the Van Sickle Trail.
And a drive to east shore to swim around our favorite rocks. 
More pics & video of Bonsai Rock in tomorrow's post.

7-4-18

Happy 4th of July!

We honor America on this Independence Day. Home of the free because of the brave. Thank you.
We have grateful hearts.

Sunday, July 8, 2018

7-3-18

I Love Maps!!!!

"All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination."
- Earl Nightingale

Photo from our PCT trip; gathering around the map to see where we're at and where we're going.
It's one of my favorite things to do. Who else likes maps?

7-2-18

Good morning, Rich! :-)
Where are we hiking today?
How about more PCT fun!?
Made a bouquet of pretty wildflowers along our trek...
...and invited Olivia & Heather to be my bridesmaids.
19 years later I say "I DO" to Bob again. :-)
This was the last little mountain lake we'd see on our PCT hike in The Desolation Wilderness.
Time to exit & return to big Lake Tahoe.
Olivia's tired feet hitting the sand of Lake Tahoe. 
Our feet were tired too.
We celebrated our successful trip at Chambers Landing.
Looking back... this will be 3 days we'll always remember.
It was the perfect PCT adventure!

7-1-18

 June 27 (Day 2) on the PCT continued...
Looks like a good spot to filter water.
And take a nap! :-)
This is Fontanilles Lake.
Just another pretty place in the wilderness.
Moving on.
Moving up.
Moving over.
Olivia was brought to tears in this moment. This was Olivia's 1st backpacking trip and she almost canceled coming because she was nervous about how to pack. We knew she would do great... and she did. Surrounded by the beauty on the top of Phipp's Pass + looking at the distance hiked with a heavy load = feeling victorious. 
#happy tears.
Even though it's not our 1st backpacking experience we still get caught up in the accomplishment filled with fun times & special memories.
We are thrilled Olivia said yes to this new adventure!
We got over Phipp's Pass and started looking for a place to set up camp #2.
Looks like Rubicon Lake is the place. We washed up in the chilly water, put on clean clothes and gathered for supper.
What's on the freeze-dried menu tonight!?