More Celebrating

After the graduation, Kent, Dakota, BreZaak and the rest of our family went to lunch to celebrate!

...because some of us celebrate with our mouth wide open and my kids love it when I get caught. 

BreZaak took  Dakota home. They and my parents  had a wedding to attend. The rest of us went to see Krista's new home. We  spent a few hours at a park near her place....

No zip lines, but Stacia loved to spin in circles.

 

The webs aren't as amazing as they are in Japan, but the kids enjoyed

 

I got in a 50 min walk while the others played soccer

 

This teeter totter thing was fun....

 

We finally left the park and went for some frozen yogurt.

 

BreZaak joined us.

 

We went to pick up Harmony (grand-niece) and stopped by New Hope Eugene to see the lights....this is a great show. They give you free popcorn, cookies, and hot chocolate....you sit in your car and can listen to the music and the Christmas story. Very cool.  The lights blink and change...the music is pretty....very fun.

After the lights BreZaak went home. Krista and the rest of the kids went to the place we were staying. We picked up Will (my brother) and Sherri and the four of us went out to dinner. It was the first and only time this trip we snatched to just visit. It was good.

Michael and I took advantage of the drive across to Eugene with Krista to connect. Always fun.

We head to bed with the knowledge that we need to be up, packed and at church by 0830 tomorrow morning.

Choosing Joy!
©2014 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

WOOT! Izaak Graduates!

In every life there are some moments that are HUGE, bigger than the norm. THIS was one of those moments in the life of our son-in-law, Izaak, and therefore, in our family life.

Today, Izaak graduated from New Hope Christian College. The path he took doesn't mirror the other graduates....but the path he took, when surrendered to God, has made him the highly determined, man of God we know him to be.  This is certainly not the spot to tell all of Izaak's story....but this is a young man who did not graduate from high school. He studied hard and earned his GED and when God called him to college - he went.

Today he stands before us as a graduate - WITH HONORS - magna cum laude. When God restores; He does it well.  It was SO WORTH it to race the storm from CA to OR to be there for this huge moment of redemption and achievement! We are bursting with pride over the way God is working in Izaak's life.  My new favorite family photo - though it's missing the three Gherkin males in TX.

front - Stacia; Middle - Dakota, me, Bre, Izaak, Krista My Dad
Back: My mom, Arielle, Zander, Nolan, Will (my brothers) Michael

 Being awarded honors!

 

Hugging Pres. Hidashi after being given his diploma

Professor Burke (Larry) is one of two of OUR professors still left at the college. He welcomes the graduates into the alumni association.

 

My Dad and Izaak

 

Dakota, Izaak and BreAnne

 

Miss Kutz (Trudy) is the second of our professors still at the college. I'm thrilled our girls were able to take classes with and be mentored by Trudy.

 

 

Izaak's middle son Matt (left) and parents

 

BreZaak!

 

Izaak's step-dad and Izaak

 

Dakota with the $50,000 balloon given to graduates ::snort::

 

Krista and Michael

 

Izaak and Dakota

 

All smiles!

 

Girls Dorm - ah the memories...

Expect more posts from this day.
Choosing Joy!
©2014 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Exploring Springfield

Michael began the day with a meeting with his endorser. John is always fun to visit with and they had a lot to cover. LOL

 

The rest of us worked on school and lounged around.

 

I did a bit of research to see if there were any restaurants in the area with good reviews. I try not to dictate life for those around me - but I've got to say  - if you are a vegan traveling and the only option on every menu is a "veggie burger"  or iceberg salad without the cheese and meat - it gets old. ::grin::

 

Arielle and I found several restaurants that looked "likely" and seemed to have salads for us....but then we found Laughing Planet Cafe. It had good reviews, REAL food for vegans, vegetarians and omnivores....bowls, burritos, soup made from scratch, salads with all the good stuff.

 

We met Mom, Dad and BreAnne for lunch at the Laughing Planet. The dinos on the table were a fun

addition. I had really good vegan chili and a kale salad that was amazing. They even had nutritional yeast to shake on the chili. The men were happy with their Bubba Burrito and Grilled Chicken burritos.  Michael and I were happy to feed all six of us for $34 - and it was REAL food.

It was a cheerful place to eat. I'd love to run a place like this (or at least find one) with a Christian world view....but I ignored all the propaganda and enjoyed my God-given and blessed real food. 

We had hoped to visit a Victorian house after lunch - but it was closed. Dad went home, but Mom joined us for a trip to the Springfield Museum.  It's a small museum but it was interesting and gave me a new appreciation for Springfield. It was also free.

 

Stacia and Alex went on a bit of "hunt" through the museum with a sheet they had for kids....

 

See the Simpsons on the back wall -  they were befuddled as to WHY something like that would be on the wall - they were not in tune with their Springfield culture.


We left the museum and walked around to view some of the recent murals painted on various old stores. They've spent a lot of time renovating the area since we lived here.

And here it is - the star of downtown - the Simpson Mural. Contrary to all the rumors - it's THIS Springfield the creator of Simpsons had in mind when he created the series. He lived in this area. THIS is the only mural that he and his team have approved and collaborated with to create in any Springfield.  THIS is the REAL SPRINGFIELD. All that aside, I've never watched a full episode of the Simpsons. They're values and behaviors were not ones we wanted the Gherkins to imitate. LOL

Bre, Arielle, Nolan, Zander and Stacia with the Simpsons

 

Around this time Krista called. She was finished with work and wanted to meet up with us. She came downtown and we toured the ART MUSEUM in Springfield. Also free.  It was a fun spot. I could find a lot to do in this area if we lived here again. LOL  This exhibit sort of topped off the day....

 

It's a woman with a bee hive above her head and honey dripping off her face......yep...sort of abstract.

 

Take a closer look at the hive....those are FLIES....yes, she glued lots and lots of dead flies on her painting.....

We met up with BreZaak to attend the college's President's reception for graduates. We picked up Dakota afterwards and then headed to grab some dinner at 9:00 p.m.  Another late night - full day - and our hearts are full.

Choosing Joy!
©2014 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

This is a great gift choice for the theologian or history buff in your life.

I've long been fascinated with World War 2 history and am familiar with Dietrich  Bonhoeffer. Having not finished the unabridged edition,  I jumped at the chance to review "Bonhoeffer Abridged: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy, " by Eric Metaxas. This edition is very readable - unlike many abridged books.

"Bonhoeffer is a story of moral courage in the face of .. monstrous..... (Bonhoeffer) became one of the first to speak out against Hitler. As a double-agent, he joined the plot to assassinate the Führer, and was hanged in Flossenberg concentration camp at age 39. Since his death, Bonhoeffer has grown to be one of the most fascinating, complex figures of the 20th century."

This story moved me. I  have long asked,  "Where was the German church when Hitler rose to power?"  Metaxas answers that question well  while illustrating the life of Bonhoeffer. I was forced to consider the role Allied Politicians had in NOT supporting those trying to over-throw Hitler. We wanted to believe, "There is no such thing as a good German." Dietrich Bonhoeffer disproved this notion.  I found it fascinating to read about this time period from the German point of view. This book has it all - theology, tough questions and answers, moral dilemmas, intrigue,  an amazing amount of new facts to digest and even a bit of unexpected romance.  I highly recommend it to history buffs, theologians, Christians who wrestle with the role of faith in social/political issues, high school students studying World War 2....you won't regret this read.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Choosing Joy! ©2014 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

The Rest of the Day

We didn't spend our ENTIRE day shopping for dream homes......

Dad and BreAnne met us for lunch. 

After lunch, Michael and the boys went out for more shopping.

Mom and Dad chose to go home.

Bre, the girls and I went and did 90% of our Christmas shopping. It's fairly easy if you limit your shopping to one or two gifts per person. ::snort::  Krista called when she got off work and joined us.

Michael called and said they were heading to BreZaak's apartment. We joined them. We eventually decided dinner was in order so headed for the food court in Valley River Mall. After everyone had their dinner of choice we hunted for a few more things we wanted to purchase.

It was too late at that point for anything besides coming home to bed. Tomorrow's another day.

Choosing Joy!
©2014 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Recreational Monsters

We slept in a bit, got up, did breakfast, some did school and I worked on Daniel, and then we headed over to my parents.  Dad wasn't there. Mom had just scrubbed some spots on her floor with gasoline and the smell was STRONG. We needed to leave quick before migraines set in for the weekend.  We grabbed Mom and headed to Junction City to look at RV's.

This one was all dolled up for a Duck Road Trip....but we wouldn't really fit in it....but we'd represent! 

My word......we are thinking this through carefully. We plan to live in our trailer - or a new beast.  We need living space and storage space....the trailer can't be used to full storage capacity as it constantly blows tires. The van is getting tired of hauling the trailer over mountains. BUT IT IS PAID FOR...and we could live "ok" on retirement pay alone in it....we think.

Michael has been researching Recreational Monsters Vehicles. He likes to research.  He found a model with bunks which would sleep us all comfortably, have a diesel engine, bigger motor, more storage and would allow for him to drive at night while we slept....or for us to visit the rest room while he drives.

We had an extra day in OR - and there are no states sales taxes here - so we looked. The used ones are much more reasonable. We would sell our trailer and van. We are just exploring. This is what we found.

This was my favorite - 

 Stacia wasn't so sure of bunks in a closet - but there were bunks.

 

The kids like the toy hauler the best - Canyon Star



 

This one was AMAZING. It's built by an Amish company in Indiana and the workmanship is stunning. It's also 6x the price of the others. With a price tag of 750K we could buy several houses for the price of one RV....and Michael pointed out it would be the uninsured motorist driving a $300 car who would run into us. LOL



 

THIS would make this so livable.....

 

Note the black screen to the right...at the push of a button it rises from behind the couch. At the push of another button all the black screens cover the windshield and windows. AND this one has an outside wide screen TV too - camping in the 21st century?

 

Arielle wholeheartedly approved this model - but there's no where for the kids to SLEEP

 

I do like this feature and would like to explore doing something like this in our trailer - though it may not be able to handle the weight. THIS would make living in an RV much easier. LOL

 

At the end of the day we'd probably have to finance about 100K and that really doesn't set well with these Ramsey hearts.....but dreaming and researching is always fun to do.

Choosing Joy!
©2014 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...