Sunny beaches

It's been almost a month since I last posted anything. So, let me just jump right in with both feet and tell you all the news!

First of all, as you may remember, we had struggled greatly with renewing the contract here at the Fulton Airport. Our hearts burned for something new, but in the end--we thought that it would be prudent to keep the contract until something else opened up.

Joah, our son, and his girlfriend, Ingrid, both received unexpected end-of-the-year bonuses and they purchased round-trip plane tickets for us to come down to Puerto Rico for a 10-day visit! We thought that it was a bit "over-the-top", but what could we do? The tickets were purchased, so we went. My mom is here visiting us...so she went along too!

My oh my! God really, really does know us intimately! It was exactly what we needed. 2008 had been a tough year for us and little did we realize how desperately we needed a rest.

So, the day after the contract was signed, we flew out of St. Louis and landed that same day in sunny San Juan. I can't begin to tell you how just flying down there brought so much relief to me! And I had hours upon hours to rest, read, and reflect on what I had read without any interruptions.

The oddest thing happened to me...well, it shouldn't seem odd...but it was the first time in ages that I had felt this way. I curled up on Ingrid's couch and just read the Bible. It was like reading a really good novel. I couldn't put it down. Chapter after chapter after chapter. No interruptions, no worries, nothing! Just reading!

We did all kinds of fun things...runs to the beaches, wading and finding treasures of coral and shells in the sand, visiting a light house on the western end of the island, going to quaint restaurants and having some of the best fresh sea food ever, shopping in a huge mall, visiting a rain forest, watching "chick flicks" with my mom and Ingrid while Joah and Travis went flying, flying in the same planes that Joah flies, etc, etc.....

Glorious, glorious time! And now, Travis is over in Dubai for 2 weeks with Gary, Jessica, and their two little boys. I went last year and it was his turn to go! My mom and I are holding down the fort and enjoying some special time together.

So, that's just to catch you up.....