A little more winter

Well it looks like spring isn't going to see us here in MT for a little while longer. It has been snowing non-stop since last night. The ground isn't frozen anymore so we just have a few inches, all the roads and sidewalks are pretty clear though. Everyday you see more and more people outside doing yard work. So I guess it is spring, just different than we are used to. Charlie enjoys the snow. It is always good to eat and roll around in. 

We heard it was 98 degrees in Baltimore yesterday. I can't say I miss the humidity and the heat, but a little warmer weather would be nice.

Nothing too exciting going on here right now. Just work and trying to decide if we are going to do a summer vacation.  Also looking for a playmate for Charlie. He misses having Lola and Jessie here with him. Rick had a nice turn-out for Sabbath school this past week (I was working). We are still working on getting a consistent group to come, but we believe all in due time the class will grow to where God wants it to be. 

Well we hope you all are enjoying the spring weather. We love and miss you all.

Arizona

So we are back from Phoenix now. The trip was fabulous. We had so much fun. We got into Phoenix after a rough layover in Denver. The weather was horrible there. There was a huge storm system. The landing was rough and when we got in we were already late to board the plane. It turned out though that our plane was late boarding...of course we found this out after we ran from gate A 60 to A 24.  We landed in Phoenix only 15 minutes late, to gorgeous weather. After we met up with Erin and Dean we headed to In-N-Out burger for the best fast food burgers there ever was. Yummmm.

Friday we just relaxed, since Thursday night we didn't get in and get to sleep until around 2 AM. Went to Target and got a few things we forgot, got some groceries, and ate at a very tasty Mexican restuarant.

Saturday we played at the pool, where we tried that new (well not very new) spray on suntain lotion. This didn't work out so well for me. I must not have sprayed it on very well because I came out of the deal very splotchy and quite a bit burnt in certain areas.  Late Saturday afternoon we played a little golf. My favorite part of that was driving the golf cart. Rick did really well even though he hasn't played or been to the driving range in quite a while.

Sunday we went to the spa at the Fairmont. We all had massages and facials. The spa there is an entire experience, they have hot tubs, sauna's, steam rooms, a pool and much more. It was Rick's first massage and he quite enjoyed himself as we all did.

Monday we drove to Sedona, it is beautiful there with all the red rocks. It was a nice little trip out there.

We got home Tuesday evening and now it is back to work for us. Hope you all are enjoying spring weather.

Easter and Mackenzie's Birthday

I had Easter off this year, which was nice since Rick and I haven't had a Sunday together in about a month. The Easter bunny visited our house this year. Brought lots of nice candies. 

This is Charlie wondering where his easter basket is. Rick and I were able to get quite a bit done around the house. Rick was on poo patrol. Now that the yard is finally thawed we have been able to clean up the back yard. After three dogs living here and using the yard as there facilities you can only imagine the amount of poo to clean up. We are trying to get things clean and ready for us to leave this Thursday.

Later in the  afternoon we planned to celebrate Mackenzie's birthday. Mackenzie had choosen to go to Mackenzie River Pizza Company. Well when we got there we found that they were not open due to it being Easter. So Mackenzie decided on The Montana Club instead. We had a lovely meal and then drove back to their house to have ice-cream cake and open presents. 

The puppies think they are going to get some of the cake...silly puppies.

All in all it was a very lovely day. We hope that everyone had a pleasant Easter Sunday.

Less Than A Week

We leave for Phoenix in less than a week. Next Thursday to be exact. We will be meeting Erin and Dean(Erika's cousins) down there. It should be a nice relaxing fun time and we are looking forward to seeing them since it has been nearly a year since we saw them last. Since Rick and I have been together we have gone on a little getaway with them every spring. We are going to go to Sedona for the day, golf, go to the spa and just relax by the pool. The weather has been in the 80's and 90's. A nice change from the 40 degree weather here in Butte. Charlie will be staying with Mom and Dad on the 2 acres with his best friend Lola. They are both getting so big. 

Speaking of Charlie, he has discovered that the bath tub full of water is a wonderful thing. He loves to drop his toys in that float and fish them out. He desperately tries to get in the tub with me when I take a bath but just isn't quite brave enough. He will jump up on the side and and bark and whine at me and then start splashing his paws in the water. He loves to splash the water in his water bowl all over the floor. He has gotten in the shower with us a few times and will just sit there at the end where the water doesn't quite hit him. We are pretty sure he is going to be a water dog.

Well we have officially moved to the upstairs of our house and are out of the dungeon as we have jokingly named it. We had been looking for a home and found one we were interested in, but FHA changed it's guidelines, so it looks like it might be towards the end of summer sometime in fall that we buy a home. That is our hope anyway. We will be staying in the parsonage until then, instead of moving to another rental and then moving again. The conference has graciously allowed us to stay.

Our Sabbath school class has been going pretty well. The first week we had a surprising three people, five if you count Rick and I. We were very surprised and very happy. The class went very well. The people that came seemed very interested and very excited about the fact that the church was offering something that was less informal. We provide a light breakfast each week. Just some fruit, hot beverages and some sort of danish or muffins. We hope and pray that the class grows, we know it will take some time, but it is much needed here in Butte. 

We have been enjoying a bit of warmer weather. Not quite ready to pull out the short sleeve shirts and shorts, but you don't have to wear a coat at all times. We are looking forward to the warmer weather where we can go hiking and camping.

This last photo is one from the back deck of Mom and Dad's new home. It was a bit cloudy as we were in between storms, but is absolutely gorgeous out there. We miss and love all of you. Happy Easter everyone.