Wenatchee

We arrived! A month ago. And are still unpacking. Does it ever end? We found a nice little condo to call home and are enjoying it immensely. We got here just in time to head to Chelan convention and then travelled to MT the next weekend for Ronan. The weather has started to warm up beautifully here and we have had a little time to get out and enjoy the area.

We spent a Saturday in Chelan visiting the Sandersons, and got to do some waterskiing. Wade's little squished cheeks are just too cute!

Tristan is a spectacular boat driver.

Jason looks so happy when he skis. You'd never know he loves it.

Last week we hiked 8 Mile Lake Trail out of Leavenworth. It was perfect for a day hike. We can't wait to go back and try a few more trails!

Farewell Chicago

My younger brothers flew out for Jason's graduation and drove our second vehicle back across the states. It was their first time visiting Chicago so we spent a few days showing them our favorite places. I don't think they were quite as excited as I was to see advertisements for Montana everywhere. Quite a few of the buses as well as train cars are painted with photos from Glacier Park.

And of course we broke down. The alternator went out on our car in the-middle-of-nowhere Montana. So rather than waiting days for a new alternator to come in we rented a dolly, hooked it up to our truck, and towed the car home to Barnes Welding.

Graduated!

We had an awesome week in Chicago, and I have lots and lots of photos to go through, but thought I would post a few quick ones of Jason's graduation....more to come!

Rockefeller Chapel where the ceremony was held

Kerry threw a beyond awesome rooftop bbq to celebrate. It was a gorgeous evening with great friends!

On The Road Again.

Yes, we're on the road again, because....Jason's graduating Saturday!!! I'm beyond impressed with his dedication. He has a job waiting for him in Wenatchee so that is where we will be making our home. Exciting!! Although we've made memories we could never replace this past year, we are looking forward to becoming somewhat settled. Hope everyone is enjoying this wonderful spring weather..summer is on the way!

A few friends from neighboring states came up for the weekend, and we were able to get outdoors a bit and enjoy the spring weather.

We started Saturday out with a great hike up Buffalo mountain. It was a gorgeous morning!

Chuck and Jennifer celebrating our arrival at Tip Top

Chad and Laura

Temperatures were in the upper 80s all day. It was a little warm but that didn't stop any one from enjoying a crazy game of ultimate frisbee.

Chuck brought along a slack line. That takes some crazy balance! It's hard to tell from the picture, but it was about chest height from the ground.

chad's house

relaxing in the shade

The Volunteer State

We only have 3 weeks left here in Tennessee and I haven't even shown you any pictures! Our time here is going by way too fast! We couldn't have asked for a better place to spend the spring. Tennessee is beautiful this time of year! The redbuds and dogwoods have been in full bloom for weeks now. Pollen has been thick, but the occasional rain does a good job of clearing the air. We spent this past weekend hiking, camping, and fishing with awesome company...does it get better than that?

The Kloostermans were coming through the area on their cross-country roadtrip, so we met up with them, as well as Chad and Laura for a camping trip.

...before the hike in..

5 miles of beautiful scenery later, we set up camp

(How many guys does it take to start a fire?)

Actually they built quite the cozy fire. Perfect for smores and warding off pestering mosquitos.

We made it!

Gail and I happy to be sitting :)

On Sunday we headed up to Mountain City for meeting with Laura and Chad. There is only one couple in town there, so friends rotate trips up from the Johnson City area. It was a gorgeous drive.

Sunday also happened to be the elder's birthday, so after lunch we headed out on a fishing trip.

86 years old and happy as can be!

clinic

As I mentioned in the previous post, we travelled to Guatemala with I Care International. Our clinic was the goal and mission of the group. Although our clinic days were busy busy busy they were very much enjoyable.

We set up in the 'salon,' which is a large concrete building in the center of town. It was only a 10 minute walk from our hotel, and when we would arrive in the morning there would be people lined up outside waiting. Some of them, 200+, would make it inside before lunch. The others would wait until we opened again in the afternoon. I was amazed by the patience of the people. A lot of them travelled from nearby villages, and if they were able, they would hire a pickup truck to bring them. Others, probably the majority, walked hours. They thanked us often and sincerely.

Buenos Dias!!

Jen and I with our translators. The intermediate school sent translators for us. This was wonderful, except that most of them couldn't speak english! They could, however, translate the many mayan dialects that were spoken by the people. Our girls were wonderful with the patients, but could hardly understand a word of what we would say.

Jason and Dr. Dan finding the "perfect" prescription

once again...

and this is what we did...for 4 days straight.

I would also tend to the diabetics when they came through. Although diabetes wasn't prevalent, those that had it frequently came through with blood sugar over 500.

Ian is Jason's classmate, and also the one who got us set up with the group. He has 3 little girls, so his wife stayed home.

This girl was adorable. She was there with her mom and we couldn't resist putting a few frames on her:)

These ladies have formed an organization within the village called 'seeds'. They are trying to teach young girls the value of education and so on. We hired them to prepare lunch on our last day. Those who ate said it was amazing, but as my stomach was still unsettled from an earlier run-in with unfriendly food, I was advised to politely decline.

Jason examining our very last patient! Patient #1600...give or take a few...

outside the clinic on our last day