Prague, Czech Republic

"It's not Czechoslovakia anymore."


"It's not?"


"No. It's like they decided to split the country and make two instead -- The Czech Republic and Slovakia. You know, like if they split Utah down the middle and had U and Tah. Or, Washington became Wash and Ington."


"What are they known for?" The Bohemian Rhapsody starts playing in my head. Nope.


"Bohemian Crystal." pause. "And I read somewhere that they have a killer soccer team."


"The Christmas Markt on Saturday will be wonderful, I think!"


The Samantha Brown DVD we watched gave us a bit of insight...


Conversations in which we bounce our questions, schema's, and theories between one another in the van on the 7-hour drive to Prague.


But since our arrival early yesterday, our senses are nearly on overload as we are in a place unlike any we've visited so far. It's a mix...


We're BLESSED to be here. But it will take some time to articulate our experience. This place (like every other place I've ever visited) has captured my heart... I am intrigued. Fascinated. These people. Their stories. Where they've come from. Our pension owner's comment yesterday, "This is the most atheist country in Europe."


Tell me more.

Happy Anniversary!

Random thoughts about us...


I was 21-years old. You were 28. We met in March of 1993. One evening in early April you took me to see the movie, "Jack the Bear" at the Lincoln Heights Theatre on the South Hill. Afterward, we went to The Onion in downtown Spokane, shared french fries and mozzarella sticks. Then we walked through Riverfront Park. At the end of the night I thought, hm, nice guy. I was pretty sure I had scared you off: You were mortified when I wanted to waltz with you on the bridge over the Spokane River... in the moonlight. After all, someone might be watching.





But, you asked me out a few nights later. And a couple days after that, too.





Seven months later, I married you on November 23rd.

Overlooking the valley from up in the German Alps along the Germany-Austria border.

We didn't know each other. Not really. We both came into the marriage lugging our baggage along with us, blissfully, albeit naively, unpacking our metaphorical elephants and then spending the first few years tiptoeing around them.

Caen, France.

We struggled to mesh our hopes and dreams. We muddled along, sometimes taking great smooth strides, other times limping -- holding one another up -- as we figured out our family's values.

Sunset at the North Sea... near Brugge, Belgium.

Mr. Steady marries FreeSpirit.

Different in sooo many ways. Committed to a life-time of learning how to love one another better.

North Sea, near Brugge, Belgium.

I was in a whimsical mood -- He was being a total goofball.

My heart replays 16 years of history with this man who continues to woo me, pursue me, romance me. I, who am impossible at times. You, so true-blue.

We come at life from such vastly different angles: you from a silly, goofball angle; me from an analytical, pondering angle. I see the far-off vision, ask the "What if..." You live in today, ask, "What's for supper tonight?"

North Sea near Brugge, Belgium

16 years of God's grace and mercy. 16 years of memories. 16 years.

9 years of Married Couples Night Out (MCNO), a guaranteed date twice a month. How we miss that!!! We went to lunch, just the two of us, on Monday -- the fourth date we've been on since moving here 2+ years ago. Hmm. Something we need to remedy.

Beneath the Eifel Tower in Paris, France.

I dream of seeing the world. You figure out where we'll eat and sleep upon our arrival.

Me, the visionary. You, the get-er-done man. Literally, I dream out loud, "Wouldn't it be fun to ___________?" You have a knack for making it happen.

Chess Square, Amsterdam, Holland

On Monday we toasted, our iced tea glasses chnked, "To us."


When we mentioned our anniversary to our children Isaiah said, "Good job!" smile. Yes, good job. We laughed, and he wanted to know what was so funny. We explained marriage is no easy feat. Sometimes it's a lot of hard work. That it takes committment. He pondered that for a moment, then, "Really?"

Really, really.

That evening I looked into your eyes, "Thank you for asking me to marry you."

"Thank you for saying 'yes.'"

If I had it to do over, I'd choose you again.

I love you.

ROME, ITALY ~ April 16 - 21, 2009

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Encourage Thyself, Sister!

Overwhelmed by "mama guilt," disappointed in not meeting my own expectations, self-pity overshadowed my afternoon hours. Yet, later, in the stillness of moments when drifting into sleep, Spirit whispered,

But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

I Samuel 30:6

Today is a new day. And I'm charged with a sense of renewed purpose. Renewed hope.

(You're so right, Bethany, a good night's sleep does wonders! Two more in a row ought to set the gauges at full! Wise counsel, Dear Friend!)

"Every day is a chance for a new stance like every song is the beginning of a new dance!" (One World by Toby Mac) Time to dance! smile.

The story in I Samuel 30 reads like an action-thriller. All the elements of a fast-paced blockbuster are in there. What I love is that the story didn't end with David's discouragement. Instead, he encourages himself in the Lord and then goes on to win the victory.

Yes. Today I will take back ground. Today I will be victorious. Today I will spread an infectious attitude of thankfulness.

This is the day which the Lord has made;

[I] will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalm 118:24

Like the sunrise that gloriously greets this new day, my soul is filled with gratitude and expectation. Today I'll lay mosaic tiles...

Are you as curious as I am as to the art, the beauty, the inspiration, the adventure that lies ahead?

Because He lives.

But thanks be to God, who gives [Sharon] the victory through [her] Lord Jesus Christ. ~ I Cor. 15:57

(Photos: Views of the sunrise from our village.)

Laying Tiles

"Thanks, Mom! You're nice and sweet!" She skips toward the door, lacing arms through coat sleeves as she steps outside. "Oh!" She puts her head around the edge of the door, "And if you had said 'no' I would still have a good attitude!"

{long, long sigh} It's the time of day for grand intentions.

• Make sure I'm available when Israel walks through the door. (No computer, no FB, no having my nose in a book...)
• Have a healthy snack ready... Maybe even meet her at the bus stop.
• Hang out with her while she works on homework.

I diligently keep an eye on the time, then procrastinate, reasoning Just a few more minutes, catch up on a few friends through their blog or FB status, read the latest celeb news, peruse the kitchen cupboards for chocolate (though I already know there isn't any -- I devoured the last of it recently)... Stand in the middle of the kitchen and laugh at myself as I relate to Evelyn Couch when she cries to Ninny Threadgoode, "I wish I had the courage to get it over with and get really fat!" (from Fried Green Tomatoes)

My! This wallowing in self-pity! These self-talk mosaic tiles, things I wouldn't think of saying to another person! This pattern is hopeless. Utterly defeating.

Tiles of good intentions that I lay in a pattern wrought in procrastination and perfectionism. Overwhelmed by racing thoughts, I try to subdue them with food while the tangled mess becomes -- well, not what I had pictured. But then, that's the way of distraction, isn't it?

To live up to the "nice and sweet" in me. To lay the tiles in a pattern that makes sense, makes art. Brings about inspiration. To follow through on the goal. To fix my gaze straight ahead, not distracted by what is on my right or my left, but to proceed forward.

This funk leaves me feeling emotionally exhausted, used up, anxious... and no good to anyone. Self-absorption drains resources.

I long to skip toward my destination full of thankfulness, no matter what. To carefully place tiles that will be a blessing.

Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left; remove thy foot from evil. ~Proverbs 4:25-27

(Photos from an Ancient Roman Bath House nearby.)