South of the Border...

For the second year in a row my wife is going to Mexico... without me. She is also leaving behind the children... now before you start laughing or anything like that just understand i am a big believer in stuff like cake for breakfast.... and lunch.... and dinner. It's a lot easier.

Ruthie and the rest of the team from our church will be helping to build something... last year it was a fire house that several villages in the region of Mexico they went to shared with one another. This year my understanding is that they may be helping to build a school! Very cool!

Now, my wife tells me it is back breaking work... and looking at the pictures she showed me, it looks pretty tough but hey she's a pretty tough chick! Several of the others who will be on this trip with her are veterans of these trips into Mexico while a few are first timers. For the past 11 years we have been sending groups to Mexico... and they have built 27 homes in that time! This group has been working at raising their own funds and attending informational meetings since the beginning of the year... this past Sunday they prepared huge duffel bags of all the things they planned to bring to Mexico and brought them at the church to be weighed (50 pounds is the limit).

Ruthie went last year and grew tired of taking cold showers out in the cow pasture that was home for several days in Mexico and asked for a Sun Shower for Mother's Day.... so that was what she got... Exciting huh?!? Sleeping in a tent on the ground in another country for several days... now that's pretty cool stuff.

It's even all the more amazing to me because i remember quite clearly what my wife's feelings were back before we were married about leaving the United States... let's just say, she wasn't a real "fan" of international travel. But after twenty plus years of hiking all around the US, living in western Canada, spending time while in college in eastern Canada... she does quite well with not being in the US all the time.

Well, i better get going... i am going to need to continue to plan our "real" menu while Ruthie is gone. i mean she made up a menu list for the next several days but i can make pancakes as easily as i can make macaroni and cheese... By the way, is it possible to make cornbread on the grill?

One Crazy Summer...in a good way!

Non-Stop!

That is how i describe the last few weeks at the Daniels household!

Between trips to hang out with friends in Indianapolis, a missions trip to Mexico, a week at Camp in central Indiana and another missions trip to Atlanta, Georgia... various members of the family have had to adjust to changing time zones, spend 24 hours (one entire day) in a mini-van simply driving, try to live without Mom around (this is huge) and wash mountains of laundry! All of this travel and seeing the world has been a bit insane! But it has been good too!

Pictures of our Mexico missions trip are forthcoming as are pictures from Camp Good News! The trip to Atlanta just happened this morning around 6AM but i am sure that there will be plenty of pictures to share as well when everyone returns from the Dream Center!

The one thing that has struck me with all of this non-stop action around our house has been that our three oldest are growing up... fast.

Of course the three year old is going to be around for a while but the others, well we had a bit of a wake up call to having an empty house might be like one day. Ruthie hung out with our 3 year old and i found out what it was like to make up meals as we went along! With no one in the house there really wasn't any reason to keep the fridge stocked! i am really hoping we stick to that one when the oldest ones are out on their own... hopefully it'll discourage them from thinking they can come and raid our fridge when theirs' is empty! i can hear them now.... "Hey let's go over to Mom and Dad's they always have extra food in the fridge... Uh, check that, no they don't... every since we left the house all they have is ice!"

Anyway, i will be getting photos of our travels and as soon as i do, my plan is to can get them uploaded... uh oh i better go, Ruthie has started the mini-van and the kids are loading up... not sure where we're off to next but it'll be a blast!