Olivia officially entered the world of school this past month, joining Mommy at her FIRST 5 Preschool in Ivanhoe. She is one of two three-year-olds in the class, and doing well! She loves doing "homework" and even won the "Catch of the Day" award one day for being an "enthusiastic singer." :) Proud to be a Big Girl, we hope her love of learning continues for a lifetime!
On Monday September 10th I (Jeff) climbed half dome with 3 close friends and co-workers (Dave Hansen, Hector Pinto, and Jonathan Thompson). For those who don't know half dome is in Yosemite National Park. It is about an 8.2 mile hike in which you gain around 5,000 feet of elevation. It was a tremendous day of hiking and fellowship. The view along the trail and from the top were absolutely amazing! If you're a hiker and have never climbed it, it is a must do. Worth the trip from anywhere in the world! Here are a few pictures to help illustrate the point.
Looking up at half dome from the trail
Standing at the base of the cables before the final assent
Views from the Top!!
On Saturday September 8th we had the Students International Fundraising Banquet. It was a fabulous night! Just under 400 people came to hear about what God is doing through SI. It was a fun evening for us of connecting with new and old friends. To put the icing on the cake about $40,000 was raised for SI!! Praise God!
We're a little behind in our blogging, but here are some pictures from a few weeks ago when my (Tracey's) parents were out here for a visit. We confess, we did NOT take these pictures--they did. But we are taking the liberty of posting them anyway! We hope you enjoy!
We'd also like to give you an update on our lives since returning to "normal"--we're doing pretty well adjusting back to California life, I think. It's always with mixed feelings that we come home. I personally have been enjoying being in one place and not having to live out of suitcases, and the kids seem to like having a little more routine in their lives. Olivia talks about Costa Rica and "Gualamala" a lot, and says she would like to live in Costa Rica. Jeff has had a little harder time coming home and would be ready to move to Costa Rica tomorrow if he could. Oral surgery two weeks ago didn't help (ouch!), but that seems to be on the mend now. Mentally, we are making lists in our minds about what to keep, sell, store, and give away. However, we are also trying to live in the present and enjoy this next year together in Visalia. We had a get together last week with some people who want to go with us to CR. It was a wonderful time! Please be praying that God would continue to lead clearly in each of our lives. I told somebody yesterday that we are walking on the road that leads to Costa Rica, and so far it has been a very smooth one! May it continue to be so!!
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