Imperfectly Perfect Memories

Sometimes, perfect situations don't always lend themselves to lasting memories. More often than not, it's those times when nothing goes according to plan that leave an indelible mark in your memory.

Our day wasn't to that extreme by any stretch of the imagination, but it will leave a mark nonetheless.

We've been enjoying a family vacation for the past few days in Banff National Park in Alberta Canada. Breathtaking to say the least. According to many people, the must see area in the park is Lake Louise and Lake Moraine. So, on Monday morning we packed up the car and started the 1 hour trek to the lakes. As we got closer, the thicker the cloud covering got and the more ominous the skies grew. By the time we got to the little tourist center just a mile kilometer or two away, it was pretty obvious that we were not going to be seeing the lake on this particular occasion. We opted to take a hike to a nearby waterfall.

Although the waterfall was awesome, we were determined to see and experience the lakes. So with broken skies and high hopes, we packed up the car on Wednesday morning and headed out.

Once again we were met by foreboding skies, but we were resolute to press on and reach the lakes.

50km away - Sheets of rain right over where we're heading.

20km away - Rain on the windshield.

15km away - The clouds are breaking a bit!

7km away - Elias blows chunks in the back seat! No place to pull off and clean up.

0km - Destination reached (yay)! Elias is covered in puke (boo)! The clouds have lifted (yay)!...... and.... to top it all off....... it's snowing. Really. Snowing. 

THAT, my friends, makes a memory.

Clean up, clean up, ev-ry-bo-dy ev-ery-where...

One day Dana came into the playroom to find a good thing... Elsie cleaning up the playroom... or so she thought. You be the judge.

... and Another Thing!...

This was a little conversation that happened between our friend's daughter and Elias. I think the translation might sound something like the Costanzas of Seinfeld fame.

Easter 2010

It was a wonderful Easter. A day to remember because it was a day that changed everything. Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead. Hallelujah!

There's really no mistaking that these two are related.

Hugs and kisses

Two beautiful girls

Posing. A little.

Cookin it up with Halmuni

Pre-Easter egg-hunt

Scotch. Handguns. Family. Cake. 40...nuf said.

My Freddy turned the big 40 on the 18th of this month and I have been blessed to be involved in the last decade of those birthdays! It has been such a gift to witness first hand the life-giving changes that God has made in those 10 years. Love you sweetie! What will he have for you in the next ten years? I'm looking forward to walking in that with you!

Rest in Peace

My grandma. What can I say besides She...Was...AWESOME. She was tough and kind. She was the quintessential little Italian Grandma and showed her love through food. She would cook 10 pies in one sitting to make sure we used up those apples and would have something warm to enjoy in the middle of winter. She cooked pots and pots of sauce and made sheets and sheets of ravioli. She fed us and loved us. She was a mean poker player, and I spent many full afternoons drinking 7-up floats and playing Chang Hi Rummy, or as we lovingly called it, Grandma Wins.

Tonight my grandma met Jesus, in person. Rena Georgi Conley past way after 99 years and 7 months. She was loved and I miss her.

*poof* 2 Months Goes By

It's no mystery that time flies.

It seems like just yesterday that we were celebrating Elsie's 3rd Birthday... but now it's 8 weeks later! I don't think it's having a lack of things to write about, but rather, being so caught up living life that we seldom find time to take a step back and think or talk about life. That's when I remembered that this is not simply a scratchpad for us, but also (hopefully) a collection of snapshots throughout Elsie and Elias' lives for them to be able to revisit later in their lives.

SO, having said that, the last two months have been very fun, challenging, and wonderful. We've had some sicknesses run through the house (RSV - respiratory somethingerother virus) which turned Elsie into a barking seal and contender for the longest continuous snot-stream to exit a human being.

Elias also has been dealing with his first cold, but it has been concurrent with the introduction of 6 new teeth. Yes, you read that correctly - SIX. Poor little guy is going from 2 teeth to 8 in one fell swoop. Little overachiever. This does, however, explain why he has been slightly less than interested in eating, sleeping, or smiling.... but thankfully mostly all of those teeth have cut now and he's back to being himself... whatever that means as he seems to be changing daily.