life lately...

Happy Wednesday!
I love Wednesdays... I'm off from work, it's my play-day at the zoo, and I can regroup for the last two days of the week. The weekend doesn't seem too far off!

1. We were so thrilled to help out at a back to school event for foster kids!
It was really a well run, wonderful event. Each child received a new backpack filled
with school supplies, a school uniform, a new pair of shoes, and even a fresh haircut to
start the year off right! There was also a bus for health screening and if they needed glasses,
they got them. A great collaboration of nonprofits in our corner of the world.
There were also toys... Eric & I got to work the toy table!

2. Look at the proud {exhausted} Mama lion!
One of {her three} cubs snuggled right in and posed for this photo!

3. Just some Sam's Club roses...

4. We've had a couple of relaxing weekends, and they have been blissful...

5. Cousins! We love when Texas family is in town.
We all had a great visit, and it was fun capturing these four.
Yes, four! Laura was skype-ing in!

6. Summer birthdays... and have you met Nothing bundt Cakes?
They are delicious. And that little one?
It's gluten-free... so yes, Eric is happy.

7. Eric is started at his new school yesterday and he's now keeping the Bullfrogs safe.
His office is decorate appropriately... courtesy of his personal crafter. 

8. Paper cranes from Denver. Be still my heart. 

9. BINGO! After months and months of playing Bingo at the brewery, I won!
It was very exciting... and I probably scared some people with how excited I was!

let the vineyards be fruitful...

We visited Cedar Ridge Winery when we visited Camden last November... twice. It was my first {and second} trip to a vineyard, and I was excited to see all it had to offer! The day was gray, the drizzle was heavy... and the vines were in hibernation for the winter. Good thing I'm not the kind of girl who would let that get in the way of enjoying the wine and our visit! We brought Camden back for lunch the next day... in the even heavier drizzle.

Coming back to Iowa in the {almost} spring was such a joy! It was still cold {some days very cold!} but the landscapes were green, the trees were beginning to bud, and the flowers were in bloom. And... the vineyard was green.

We brought our parents to the vineyard for lunch, for a casual and fun adventure. Half of me was enjoying the lunch and the wine... and the other half of me was itching to get outside and walk through the vineyard. I wasn't sure if Eric would go for it, because we had already done a little morning hike, but I knew I was going to try to get him to say yes anyway.

I can be very persuasive... or, he just loves me that much.
Our parents went on to figure out their own afternoon adventures and we walked. The air was crisp, and the skies were blue... my perfect kind of day. And just us, hand in hand, was what my soul needed to quiet itself in the frenzy of family and celebrations. While we walked the rows, my heart was singing...

Let the vineyards be fruitful, Lord, 

and fill to the brim our cup of blessing.

...it just seemed fitting.

And when we had walked up the last hill back towards the restaurant. I paused to take a picture... the brilliant pink blooms knew I couldn't resist. A woman spotted us, and struck up a conversation about the flowering trees, Iowa, and the beautiful day. It was a simple conversation, not much deeper than how's the weather? but I love moments like this because it's not really us to have these conversations with strangers.  It adds so much to our life, and makes me feel like we are growing! A few minutes later, her husband walked up and joined us, introductions were made all around, and the conversation continued. More about Iowa, a little about Florida, and then some graduation talk. And then...Richard told us that he & Kim have a small local ministry, and asked us if he could say a blessing for us. So there we stood, in the beauty of the day, with pink blooms floating around us, and he prayed. For us, for Camden, for his journey from graduation...

It was beautiful, and it made me cry... for a hundred reasons. God knows just what we need, and His timing is always perfect.

Let the vineyards be fruitful, Lord...

our cast of characters...

Maybe one of the reasons I was so excited for this trip was that we would all {almost all... Tina, you were missed!} be together to celebrate: my family, his family... our family. There was one glitch though. Laura. She moved to Colorado in April, knowing she would need a week off in July... and she felt like it was irresponsible to ask for more. She talked to Camden first, and he understood. When she told us... what could we say? So we began to plan without her...

But... God placed a new opportunity in her path, and her new job gave her weekends off! Would she be willing to fly in Saturday morning and back out Sunday night? Laura contemplated, then finally decided yes, on ONE condition... she wanted to surprise Camden. Okay. Done.

The weather leading up to our weekend was crazy across the nation. While we drove in with no problems, my parents had planned on an extra day in Nashville, but skipped out on their planned zoo day to beat the weather! The four of us arrived Thursday afternoon, a day ahead of schedule!

Eric's parents flew into Iowa Thursday night...well, it was actually Friday by the time they arrived. Delays in Florida had them racing for their delayed connection in Atlanta. But they made it, and that was what was important.

Eric's brother and his wife {Uncle Fritz & Aunt Heather} were due to arrive Friday at noon, and... their flight was cancelled. They ended up finding another flight from Richmond to Dallas, which eventually made its way to Iowa. Five hours late? Better than never. We were able to keep our dinner reservation at the Sing-A-Long Piano Bar, which was delicious and fun.

And that brings us to Laura... our surprise guest.
She was due to arrive at noon, before Baccalaureate. But those storms kept on raging, and there were delays and changed flights... and I was almost to my breaking point. Too much stress. So we went to the ceremony without her, enjoyed the reception, and made our way on to dinner...

Aunt and Uncle to her rescue... they picked her up at the airport and met us at the restaurant {which had it's own set of issues: prom, graduation...} The foyer at the restaurant was packed - no room to budge, no room to pull off the surprise. So we waited outside in the cold until there was a little more breathing room.

I was expecting shock and utter surprise... and I might have felt robbed at his "Oh, hi! It's you!" response to seeing his sister... but they sat at dinner together and chatted and laughed and were silly together and it brought me to tears. Gasping-I-can-hardly-speak tears.  And the difficulties of the travel day disappeared...

p.s. If Tina and her kiddos could have come we would have all ALL been together... but travel is expensive, and it was May, and there is so much school to do in May! They were definitely there in spirit and in our hearts!

the road trip...

I was itching to get on the road, so excited to begin this journey to graduation. Eric had somehow talked me into leaving after work, instead of in the wee hours of the next morning ... it took me some time to come around to it. The car was packed, we had one one more work day to get through. I was antsy. Our original goal was to leave by 5pm, but after a delay in Eric's Do The Right Thing Ceremony, we were thrilled to pull out of the driveway at 5:30, with our first destination 4 hours away. Here's the thing... waking up after a great night's sleep and already being halfway through Florida was a fantastic feeling! And not worrying about landing in Atlanta during rush hour was a huge bonus!

Have you ever eaten your Chick-fil-a with a knife & fork? Nothing like fancy fast food!

Tennessee was so pretty along the way! We did stop at a rest stop to get in some scenery & steps!

Kentucky!

Once we hit Illinois we had to stop for gas (which was a mistake $$$) and STUCKEYS!
And just for the memory, we did buy Eric a t-shirt!

Missouri! It was really neat to drive right through St. Louis and see the Arch!
Not long after this, we stopped to refuel... and it was COLD! Eric then realized he did not pack a jacket. Or a sweatshirt. 

Iowa at last!!!  My goal was to make these Cheez-its last the whole trip...and THEY DID!

Sometimes getting there is half the fun... and because we felt ahead of schedule, we were relaxed along the way. My parents were a couple of hours behind us on the second travel day, and texting back and forth with my Mom added to the fun. She would send me something like: Wow - lots of deer on the the side of the road! And then I replied: Fox coming up on your right! And while she didn't understand it when she read it, two minutes later she did! And when she let me know they had crossed into Iowa, I asked her: Did you pass the weird holes in the ground? It kept us laughing!

Also I have felt the best I ever have on a road trip and I attribute it to something I have never ever done before: exercise on vacation. Yes. Every morning I got up and did my workout in the hotel, and it energized me for the day!

Maybe the best part of the road trip was this...

...seeing his face, being together.



p.s. The jacket you see Eric wearing? That was our actual first stop in Iowa...