in the valley of the SUN

We are in Phoenix, we arrived yesterday evening. It's amazing how hot and dry a desert is. And in spite of it, or because of it, there are so many people that live here and consider it a 'hot' living location. But I wonder who first came here, looked around the empty, dry desert and thought, "I think this would be a great place to live"? hmmm. Anyway, we will call this place home in two years. It does have spectacular sunsets, my brother and a good friend, and F-16s.

Today we spent the day hanging out at Luke AFB, watching the planes, working out, and going to the library. We are about to go meet Andrew since he just got off work. And we will be hanging out this weekend at the Grand Canyon. How fun.

Goodbye LA, hello AZ

Yesterday was our last day here in Southern California. Peter had an early morning golfing with the cousins, which has become a tradition of theirs. (Mike won, in case you're wondering Johnny.) I made biscotti, just to try it out since I had a kitchen at my disposal. We cleaned out our car, Old Faithful, and re-packed it ready to hit the road again. And we had a dinner with all the extended Sailhamers of SoCal which was just awesome. We came home to Mom Sailhamer's famous guacamole and another episode of the military channel with the family. Just a warning to our Boston siblings, this may be what we are watching around Thanksgiving too instead of a black and white movie. Peter is hooked!

Today we are heading to Arizona to see my little brother, some friends, the Grand Canyon, and Luke Air Force Base (which will be where we'll be living in two years). The trip definitely seems like it is winding down to a close and we are excited to head back to Denver and "real" life. But before that we'll have the last hurrah in the desert oasis of Phoenix.

a tea party to remember

Last week Peter's Aunt Claudette invited his mom and I over for a tea party! I LOVE tea parties and this one will be such a fun memory for me of time in Southern California. Let me help you picture it all.

Aunt Claudette is a lovely and enthusiastic woman in her 70s with beautiful white hair. She has an ever-present smile on her face and is always laughing and loving the people around her. Every family needs an Aunt Claudette (and Uncle Billy too - but that's another story).
When we got to her home the table was set with flowers, lace and fine china. Orchestral music was playing in the background and we were dressed to fit the part. Perhaps something so fancy would make one feel nervous to have proper etiquette or be very graceful and charming. I did notice that I slowly ate my soup the proper way, dipping the spoon and scooping away from me. Even with all the formality, there was never a stiff nor uncomfortable moment; rather an ease permeated the air. We were having fun with playing tea party. We laughed and talked and told stories. Over the next three hours we lingered over a delicate pear tea, sweet scones, pumpkin soup, heart-shaped cucumber and chicken crescent sandwiches, and little petit fours.

apple pie day

Outside it is cold and drizzly and, like most people on these types of days, I just want to stay in and be warm and cozy. Today is an apple-pie-making day. Won't it be so nice to have the apple pie smell wafting through the house on this cold, fall day? Mom Sailhamer has been wanting to make one for the last week, but it just hasn't worked out. So this will be a great surprise to come home to. The pie dough that I made last night is ready and I just found a recipe that I want to try. oh what fun!

Peter's surfing start!

David had the weekend off of work so we hit the beach. The three of us "kids" drove down to the beach despite the day being in the 60s and rainy.  We got chai to drink and strolled along the pier watching the fisherman. That's where Peter started watching the surfers more than the fish. He'd wanted to go before, so still interested he checked on how much it would cost to rent a surf board - only $10, he was sold. All through the lunch that David treated us to his mind kept returning to surfing and what it would be like. By the time lunch was over and he rented the board he was both super excited and a little nervous. As the only surfer without a wet suit and the band strapped to his wrist instead of his ankle, one might have been able to tell that he was new at this. But Pete happily jumped into the waves and paddled out. At first the waves rocked him and David and I have footage of the wipe outs. But, natural athlete that he is combined with some tips from other bros, he started picking it up staying on the board. His time was interrupted by dolphins surfacing about 10feet from him. When I say surfacing, I mean completely jumping out of the water, doing flips and chasing each other. They stuck around for about a half an hour and it was so cool to watch from the shore. However, it was a little disconcerting for Peter since they were so close with nothing separating them in the water. His comfort was that the other surfers acted like it was normal only to find out that the had no clue since they were from Utah. I guess the locals don't usually surf on rainy days in the middle of the afternoon.

With the family

After leaving Yosemite we drove down to the LA area to spend some time with Peter's family (and mine too!). The temperature rose quickly after leaving the mountains, from the 50s to 94. The landscape changed dramatically from pine trees to shrubs and brown grasses on rolling hills and plains. We came across several old ghost towns, or semi-ghost towns, that had once been a thriving metropolis of gold diggers in the 1800s. A plaque and few of the buildings remained (among over grown trees) to give a hint of what had been. Visiting CA ghost towns might be a new pastime here, just like going to the beach. When we were all here last Christmas we went to visit the ghost town next to Jason and Betsy's land in Yermo.

We reached Fullerton and are enjoying spending time with the family. All of the kids pitched in to get Mom a new computer and David got a new monitor. So Peter is busy helping set it all up and just loving it. I went grocery shopping with Mom and helped cook. It's nice to be in a kitchen again. :-D

Yosemite

We spent a few days at Yosemite National Park. The plan was to camp, but the brochure that we were given when we entered said that you couldn't keep any food or toiletries in your car because of the bears. For a minute, we thought about disregarding that, until we read further that the black bears at Yosemite don't hibernate, but are active year-round and that if they break into your car to get food there could be a $5,000 fine. Yikes! These were not your average black bears. We pulled over to have a picnic dinner and deer walked up to us looking for food and wouldn't be scared off. That confirmed it, the wildlife in Yosemite were a little too used to people. All the campgrounds happened to be full, so we stayed in a tented cabin (much like a DTP tent for all you HoneyRockers). It was awesome. I've always wanted to sleep in one of those. And all of our food and toiletries were kept out side in a metal bear box.
We spent the next couple days hiking waterfalls and exploring the Yosemite Valley. We went to the museum and cemetery, the old school and a couple of the hotels and caught the sunset at the top of Glacier Point. "Well, of all things!" We left having done a lot, but wanting to do so much more. I'm so thankful for these persevered wilderness that we can go to and explore.

San Francisco driving adventures

We made it to San Francisco yesterday. Driving in we were able to watch the end of the Blue Angels' air show over the Bay. Guess who was super excited about that? We had great seats from where we were (almost) parked on the freeway with the amount of traffic. We joked about the rush-hour traffic until we realized that it was Sunday afternoon... a lot of people live in San Francisco. In the next four hours we slowly drove through San Francisco. Peter did a great job weaving in and out and squeezing through tight places. Wheew, it was stressful for me in the passenger seat, but he had a blast. We went down to the Fisherman's Wharf and got a great view of Alcatraz. Then drove down  Lombard Street, famous because of the steep 27% grade of the road and tight, hairpin turns that you have to make. Peter's words, "This is better than a roller coaster!" And it was fun. The scary part was coming to one huge hill that we had to go up. Peter had the Jeep floored the whole way up and we might have been doing less than 5 miles per hour. I'm so glad we made it up, but we had to pull over for the car to cool down some after that work out. I'm starting to think that we should name our Jeep (with 200,00miles) Old Faithful.

the sights along PCH: hitch-hikers and Redwood Giants

We continue on our way down the Pacific Coast Highway, the ever-changing road. It is the scenic route that is always keeping us alert with it's ocean views and winding roads through the mountains. We've passed several road bikers that are sharing the road as they bike to San Francisco or further south, as well as A LOT of hitch-hikers. I thought that hitch-hiking was illegal, but maybe not. Amazingly, we have seen one man three times now. The first time we saw each other we made eye-contact and waved. He probably noted our Wisconsin license plate and wondered why we were way out here. Miles down the road we saw him again and gave a wave of recognition. And again, hours later, a third time. We got a huge smile and a 'hey-I-know-you-point' while we honked and waved. I really wished we could pick him up and give him a ride and hear his story, but our car is packed full with no extra room.

We drove through the Redwoods yesterday, literally, down the Avenue of the Giants. It is amazing how thick they are and to think of some of the trees being 3,000 years old. Oh, the stories they could tell. We also stopped to take a gondola ride through the trees canopy and hear the tall tales of Paul Bunyan.

Today we will make San Francisco and spend a couple days there. We got an early start today since we were at a strange campsite and the only one for miles around. It was a tree-less, paved lot with one bathroom that had a screen door and there was polka music playing until early in the morning. The cost for one night was $45, but Peter talked them down to $16 (the most that we've paid thus far to camp). This trip will be full of crazy stories though.

the Pacific coast

Yesterday dawned a cold, stormy day of wind, rain and mists. The first 'bad' weather that we've come across. It was also the day that we arrived at the rocky Pacific coast of Oregon. So instead of soaking in the sun on Cannon beach and stroll along where the sea water meets the sand. We got coffee and chai and drove to a high over-look to watch the storm-tossed waves break against the rocks and shore. It was one of those mornings where you wanted to have a hot drink, good company and talk about dreams and stories and beautiful things and to reflect. We stayed there for a while and then drove down the coast. We stopped several times to take pictures and, at one point, watch several sea lions on the beach.

Later in the afternoon we went to tour the Tillamook Cheese Factory. It was so fun to see how they made cheese and ice cream and try their samples. The factory produces 167,000 pounds of cheese each day.

the smokin' good time continues

So, Mt St Helens was a blast! Besides breath-taking views, the rest areas offer historical information that ignite the imagination. If you guys have not been there we would suggest that you go. Pete says it's a 'lava' fun. There are a lot of Elk there as well and it's pretty easy to catch a view of them. We also enjoyed an Elk burger for lunch. Peter called it one of the best burgers that he's ever had. And it was good! Now on this wild west tour we have had elk, buffalo jerky, and fish prepared the Chinese way.

We arrived in Portland last night. And I drove into the city during rush hour. This is a big deal! I don't usually do city drive at all. I would rather park miles away and walk. So, I had a big accomplishment, of course with Peter's help navigating. Team Sailhamer working together again.

We camped east of the city, near the Columbia River Gorge. The route we took said it was the scenic byway, however, by the time we were driving on it all was dark. The first thing we noticed when we woke up was how windy it was here. But the sound of the wind blowing through tall pines is a beautiful thing. As we drove back to the highway we came across several tall waterfalls cascading down rocky cliffs right at the edge of the road. Funny to think that we drove right past and didn't see a thing the night before. We spent the morning taking pictures and hiking around. You might know of one falls in particular, the Multnoma Falls. They are the second highest falls in the US, 620 feet. We got chai tea at the base of the falls and after a photo shoot hiked the 1.5 miles to the top. What a spectacular view of the river. Looking at it and hiking the landscape brought a new understanding to the Oregon Trail. What a rough journey.

This afternoon we went to Washington Park in Portland and walked around the Japanese Gardens that stated back in the 1880s. It was gorgeous with small streams and waterfalls around shaded corners. Stone foot paths and bridges covered in moss wound their way through, showing off so many hidden gems. I looked in awe at the restful beauty and intricate detail of this garden.

Tonight we will walk around downtown Portland and then head to the coast. I've been told by several people that Cannon Beach is a must with spectacular views of the rocky coast.

a glimpse of military life

Yesterday we spent the afternoon at McChord Air Force Base just south of Seattle. This was our third day there in the last week or so and we felt like we were getting to know our way around pretty well. It was the first time that I've been on a base like that and it gave me more of a glimpse of what life will be looking like for us soon. In a way it had all the elements of a normal city: there was a grocery store, a mall with a food court, a library, fitness center, housing, children centers, a movie theatre, etc. The abnormal things: a gated community where you have to show ID, people in uniforms everywhere, the names on things are very military-ish, and I think every one that spoke to me called me ma'am. It was a lot of fun to be there - go to the library, eat at the food court, and go around with Peter doing his errands with him. He was able to fill out more paper work there and get fitted for his uniform instead of needing to go back to the Madison unit. ALSO, while we were there I also got my military ID, awesome huh? Now I have to find a place to use it at. :-D

So after seeing Seattle, walking around the Pike Street Market, and getting a latte at the French bakery, Le Panier, we are on our way to Mt St Helens and Portland. They say there is a coffee culture in Washington and I think that I quickly assimilated to it, funny that it didn't happen during my time in Colombia. Now, however, coffee tastes great! I've been drinking an americano every morning. There must be something addictive in it...oh yeah, caffeine. Today as we drive it is another beautiful sunny day here. We've been in Washington for over a week now and have only seen rain once. I'm starting to think that it must rain more in northern WI than in Seattle.

time with friends in Lynden, WA

We just spent the last few days with the Robins and Droullard family in Lynden, Washington. It was so nice to be around them. We went for an ocean-side stroll at night and looked at the stars, played with Carrie and Ethan's daughter Karen Poppy, did pull-ups and the slack line (I got 2 pull-ups!), drank coffee everyday and hiked a canyon in Canada (Peter's first time in Canada). It was a busy and fun few days. But the best thing is the fellowship with friends that love the Lord. We are so blessed.