Day 1: Departure Day

We brought our luggage up to the living room and took our time packing for this trip.  Normally, I don't stress a lot over packing for vacation because there's very little you can't buy on the road.  But this time, we were going to be in a remote location for the first couple days, and we really did want to remember everything.  Everything essential, anyway...and I suppose essential is a subjective term...  I learned that in my case, it's nearly impossible to pack a week of "essentials" in under 50 pounds.  Sad, but true.

In the process of all that packing, and weighing, and unpacking, and thinning the load, and repacking and weighing...somebody was very concerned.  

This is our little Gretchen, laying on my pillows in our bedroom on the morning we left.  So pathetic and helpless--we are her world.  And I can tell you we'd travel far from home a lot more often if we didn't have her.  Then again...there wouldn't be the welcome wag of a tail when we got home either...

(We left her in good hands though.  I think she was thoroughly spoiled and loved while we were gone.)

Here's our van, all packed and ready to go:  

We had a little lunch at Fletcher's Wharf:

Then we waited to board our flight.  Here's Elizabeth with our plane in the background:

And a rare look at an open cockpit:

(Mike snapped this picture when we boarded...this is probably illegal or something.  Shh...) In her window seat and ready for take-off:

This was Elizabeth's first time in an airplane.  She had a good time. We went over lots of mountains on this trip, so the view was impressive:

Look closely and see our first peek at mount Rainier as we approached Seattle:

We arrived in Washington, shopped for supplies, hooked up with Mike's brother John, enjoyed a Chipotle supper (at about 9pm our time) and made the 3 hour (or so) drive to our little Cabin at the Lone Fir resort in Cougar, Washington.

Home again...

We just returned from a family vacation to Washington State. It was great fun and very exhausting, as family vacations usually are...and one of those trips that will only grow more and more beautiful in our memories as time goes on. This trip was a reminder to me how divine providence is at work in our lives.  Nothing happens by chance, and it is truly a blessing to open our eyes to God's hand at work in the details of our lives.  God was present and faithful through the course of our trip, and it was just a privilege to see His plans unfold.  We were so thankful for the clear weather, which so many of our planned activities depended on.  And we were also thankful for the "life lessons" that we will take with us on our journey when this trip is a distant memory.
Interestingly, the "theme" that emerged early in our vacation was "Beauty for Ashes."  I hope to share more about that later. But for now, I'll just go through the trip day by day and share some pictures from our time in Washington. It will be fun to relive the memories as I share them...from the comfort of my little office here in my little house.  Because as the years go by, I am learning that no matter what adventures we find in our travels, there truly is no place like home.  I'm thankful to be back.  :-)

Locks of Love

In January of 2009, at 7 years old, a special little girl gave a special gift...

The Bible says that if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her...and God has given Elizabeth the gift of growing very long hair.  When she was little, she dreamed of growing long hair...but she didn't want to keep it for herself.  She wanted to give it to a little girl who needed it.  So...when she was 7 years old, we agreed to let her donate her hair to Locks of Love for the first time.
Here it was before:

And after:

We were afraid it would be hard on her...after all, she was a little girl who was known for her hair.  But she loved it!  It was too short for ponytails, so she wore it with hats and hair clips and did all sorts of things that she couldn't do with long hair:

But, as time passed, that got old, and she did miss her long hair.  Thankfully, it grew back incredibly fast!  She determined that she wanted to grow it even longer than the first time so if she ever donated it again, she would still be able to put it up.

Lately, she started to talk a lot about donating her hair again.  This time, she rather suddenly made up her mind that it was time.  She wasn't nearly as sentimental about it...just very matter of factly said she was ready to cut it again.  Realizing that she was going to be spending a lot of time in the water this summer, and that it was unlikely her hair would be healthy enough to donate in the fall, we agreed that this was a good time. 

This time, we cut it at home:

And the matching before picture:

Foot long ponytails:

All chopped off: 

And after it's trimmed:

I'm no hair stylist, so in a month or so we'll probably take her in for another trim to even it all out just right.  

Should be easy to take care of for the summer, but long enough to keep her daddy happy.  :-)

I think she's pretty beautiful...inside and out. 

Remembering...

This week has been flying by so quickly!

 We've been busy putting together a memorial slideshow, and we've scanned lots of beautiful pictures.  I had hoped to post a few of those over the course of the week, but I haven't had much access to the computer.  Thankfully, the video came together well, and we will share that here after the funeral.  

Marjorie Virginia Hamlin, 94, formerly of Spring Valley, died Tuesday evening, June 19, 2012, at Madonna Towers in Rochester, where she had been a resident since January 2011.

Marjorie was born April 9, 1918, in Hesper, Iowa, to Peter and Iva (Casterton) Thorson. She attended local schools until moving to Spring Valley with her family. She worked at the Sward Kemp Drug store in Spring Valley as a clerk/bookkeeper until after WW II when she entered into marriage with Richard Hamlin on Dec. 19, 1945, in Spring Valley. Richard and Marjorie lived and farmed in the Cherry Grove area until 1949, then moved to Spring Valley to continue farming until 1981. They then retired and moved to their rural home three miles north of Spring Valley. After Richard’s death in 1995, Marjorie continued to care for their rural home until 2004 when she moved to the Hillside Apartments in Spring Valley and then to Madonna Towers in 2011.

Marjorie loved working with Richard on the farm and raising their two children. She enjoyed reading, visiting with family and friends and being on her tractor mowing the lawn. She was known for her correspondence with friends and relatives of all ages. She was a member of Faith United Methodist Church and was an active member on the group that served at church functions.

Marjorie is survived by her daughter, Norma Jean (Dave) Amundson of Oronoco; son, Gary (JoAnn) of Spring Valley; four grandchildren, John (Hwa) Amundson of Greenville, Wis., Michael (Mary) Amundson of Oronoco, Darcy (Steve) Erickson of Rochester and Kristine (Scott ) Hildebrand of Rochester; and great-granddaughter, Elizabeth Amundson of Oronoco.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard; one brother, Virgil; two sisters, Wilma Stennis and Lucille Ladsten; two brothers-in-law; and a sister-in-law.

The funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, June 25, at Faith United Methodist Church in Spring Valley, with Pastor Beth Perez officiating. Burial will be in the Spring Valley Cemetery.

Friends may call at Thauwald Funeral Home in Spring Valley from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, and at the church on Monday an hour before the service.
 

I will leave you with a link to a previous post from a day that we remember fondly: Enjoy... Sunday Tradition

 

In Loving Memory...

Marjorie Virginia Hamlin

April 9, 1918 - June 19, 2012

The last several days we have been living life in slow motion.  
Our hearts and prayers were with our precious Grandma Hamlin during her last days in this world.  
Yesterday evening, she stepped into eternity.
I loved this lady like my own Grandma.  I am so grateful to have known her.  She was such a treasure...  Being a late-in-life child to my parents, my memories of my own Grandmas are limited.  I lost them both before Mike and I were married, so I was very grateful to inherit his two beautiful Grandmothers.
I felt insecure about "fitting in" to Mike's family...but I remember feeling loved and accepted by Grandma Hamlin from the very beginning.  I can honestly say that she was the sweetest person I have ever known...I feel very honored to have had her in my life.
Marjorie Virginia Thorson was born in the spring of 1918; a farm girl, and a child of the depression.  
On December of 1945, she married Richard John Hamlin.  

I remember her saying to us on several occasions, "Richard was my life."  And he was.  
She was fiercely devoted to those she loved.  Richard and Marjorie had 2 children, (Norma Jean and Gary Richard), 4 grandchildren (John, Michael, Darcy and Kristi), 1 great grandchild (Elizabeth) and 2 great grandchildren on the way (a boy and a girl).
She was simple, and sweet, and spunky and adorable, and stubborn, and dignified, and dramatic.  She loved her family and her friends...and coffee and cookies and chocolate.  (about 2-3 pounds a week in her prime.)
She loved her sweetheart...

...and her sweetheart loved her.
So...we say good-bye to someone very dear to us.  And now we reflect on the years of good memories; they were a gift.  From holiday meals at her country home to dinners at Homestyle Pizza in Spring Valley to "hiding" her Sunday cookie at her apartment in Rochester...we have much to smile about.  Oh, but we're gonna miss her.  
Her memorial service will be on Monday in Spring Valley.  

(I hope to post some memories on the blog between now and then.) 

Walk for Life

Awesome.
It's a word I typically don't use very often.
I like to save it for acts of God...things that can't be explained apart from His power and provision.
I've been using it a lot lately.

Today, I walked for LIFE.
12 days of fundraising...
14 sponsors...
104% of our goal...
$781 raised...
4 people answered the call to join us...
$1391 raised by our team...
AWESOME.
When we set a goal of $750, neither of us thought we had a chance of raising that kind of money in 12 days.
But our God is greater than our expectations.

He is the Author of Life

And He is FAITHFUL.
I am so . very . grateful . for those who came along side us both physically and financially.

And now, some memories from the day:
When we arrived it was pouring.  We were prepared to walk rain or shine, but thankfully they decided to delay the walk until 10am.

Here's our little team.  (There was another family from church who was also a part of our team, but we didn't get a picture of them, unfortunately)  We sent out an e-mail to folks from our Bible study requesting that they consider sponsoring us--or joining us--on the walk.  We were so pleased to have these folks come...
(And yes.  I'm hiding behind Hailley.  It was intentional.)


I didn't take a lot of pictures during the walk.  I was pretty focused on getting 'er done.  By this point we were on the home stretch:  

The race to the FINISH:

And again, THANK YOU to each and every person who supported us, and other members of our team, on this walk.  We don't often put out a call for support.  I don't like asking for peoples' money.  But this is a ministry that we truly believe in.  We knew our time was short...we had no idea what to expect.  Many of our donors were anonymous.  (And yes, we have greatly enjoyed speculating who you might be...)  We have no idea who you are, but God knows...and while we can't thank you personally, we have been thanking God for you often.

It was truly amazing to see God come through for us in such a big way with the fundraising.

Click here to see our fundraising page.

But I knew that He could if it pleased Him to do so.  I think it was just really special to me how He did it.  We had 14 sponsors...and several others we know who supported other members of our team.  There were walkers who had gifts of $500...$1000...even $5000.  And that is cool.  But, to be honest, most of the people in our life don't have a lot of money.  Many of our gifts were $25...and each one of those gifts represented someone who believed in life.  I know that there were small gifts given that were truly sacrificial...and it means the world to me that those people cared enough to give.  We received one gift of $1...given by our daughter...with as much love and concern as anyone who ever gave a thousand dollars... 

This day will go down in my heart as a very memorable day...  

Thank you, Lord, for the miracle of life, and the privilege of coming out to support it today.

Hello again...

My blog has been dormant, once again, for several months.
For awhile, I stopped by occasionally and it broke my heart to see that there were still people visiting.
So, I quit looking.
I don't suppose I'll be "caught up" anytime soon.  But I have a few things worth posting about so you might see some action around here in the near future.
I'm learning that I'm not a natural blogger.  But facebook, on the other hand, is a poor substitute.
So, welcome back...  :-)