It Snow Problem!

I know that many of you have been worried about me coping with the cold weather out here in the great Northwest and probably went from yellow to orange alert status if you happened to see today's forecast. Yes, snow--and lots of it. How would I ever make it to work on my bike in the snow?

Well, I wanted to allay your fears and let you know that I arrived safely without any major incidents, although there is a minor one that bears repeating. While the city of Boise plows the Green Belt which I ride each morning, the wooden bridges remain untouched. As I approached the first wooden bridge in my six-mile trek to work in front of one of only five pedestrians I saw this morning, it dawned on me what those signs near bridges in the south meant.

One of the biggest waste of tax payers money in Dixie are the signs that read, "Bridge ices before road." Given the fact that it gets cold enough to ice over a bridge about as often as the Cubs win the World Series, the signs might as well read, "Bridge wet when raining." However, as I approached the bridge, my back tire started sliding furiously to the right while my front tire disagreed and insisted left was the best direction to go. Then there was me, caught in the middle of a petty little tire fight with nothing to do but hold on. Fortunately, the two came to a resolution before I ate the bridge for breakfast.

For all of you out there expressing your concern, thank you. However, I'm re-adjusting just fine. Remember, there was a time in my childhood when I lived in jolly old England where my dad and I built igloos in the backyard for fun. Three inches of snow is nothing. :)

Long time, big news!

So, it has been a while since we have blogged. Well, today was a fun day, since we were able to hear the heartbeat of our little baby in my tummy! Yes, I am pregnant! About 13 1/2 weeks and the little one is due on Father's Day (fun for Jason). He/she could come on my birthday as well, if he/she decides to come 10 days early:) Faith has been so cute since she has found out about being a big sister (Ok, she is only 15 months and she probably doesn't have the capacity to understand anything like this yet, but let's not underestimate her abilities.) Here are some of her cute little things she does, now that she is preparing to be a big sister!

1. She was very overjoyed when she looked at the pregnancy stick and saw that Mommy was pregnant (see picture below--excuse her bedhead).



2. Aunt Malinda and Uncle Tim gave Faith a baby doll for Christmas (early) and she has been loving, kissing, cradling, hugging, sucking the baby's thumb, and love patting her new baby doll named "Baby". (see picture below) (note: she has also been driving Baby's face into the carpet while crawling and poking her very real looking eyes.)

Faith cradling Baby


Faith love patting Baby


Faith reading to Baby


Faith kissing Baby


3. When we heard our baby's heart beat for the first time, today, Faith started dancing to they rhythm of the 150 beats per minute. Unfortunately, I have no picture for this most adorable act, that I will cherish and always remember!

Faith and the Smurf Turf

Knowing Faith's reputation for never having met a crowd that she didn't like (or having met a crowd that didn't like her, for that matter), I decided to take her to a Boise State football game while Janel worked on a paper for the Journal of Nutrition.

Right after we put her down for her afternoon nap, I pedaled my bike a mile to the Boise State stadium in search of one cheap ticket. And I learned two interesting things:
1. It's so much easier to scalp for tickets on a bike. You can cover vast amounts of ground fast.
2. Boise State fans don't understand the art of ticket scalping.

I rode around on my bike with my finger in the air asking if anyone had an extra ticket. After about two minutes, I realized nobody else was using my method of scalping. One woman even yelled, "Yeah, Boise State's No. 1!", thinking that's how I support my team--riding around on a bike in silence with my index finger in the air.

After circling the stadium once, one guy just gave me his ticket. These were actually pretty good seats, too. I immediately pedaled home and waited for Faith to awaken from her nap.

We got to the game near the start of the second half where Boise State was putting a 21-7 beatdown on San Jose State. Faith had no idea what was going on, but quickly gathered an audience in about a two-row radius. At first I thought maybe the other fans believed Faith was the new Boise State mascot as she began to get passed through the stands. Sure, I was nervous--but Faith loved it. That is, until this lady started pinching her cheeks. Priceless.



I sat next to some great people, many of whom were grandparents and were ready to take Faith home to join their collection of grandkids. One grandma gave Faith some beads, which she was enjoying after the game.



Faith was also taken by the band as she started bopping every time Boise State scored, which was a lot in its 42-7 romp over San Jose State. Near the end of the game, I took her down to hang out near the band so she could boogey without the distraction of all the interested grandparents. She loved it. Here is a picture from behind the band.



We had a great time. I just hope I can take Faith to a Georgia game one day soon so she doesn't grow up her entire life thinking college football is played on blue turf.

Lumberjack & Long Hikes

So, our lives are different now. For the past umpteen years on the final Saturday in October, I've either made a trek to Jacksonville or huddled around a television to watch the so-called rivalry game between Georgia and Florida. No more! This year, we went to High Valley in south central Idaho to hang out with some of our new friends at a rustic cabin. It was so rustic that it had no electricity and was heated by a wood stove.

Instead of agonizing over a football game for three hours, I was playing Paul Bunyan with Frank and Brook. What was originally supposed to include a mountain biking trip in the Boise National Forest turned into a burn pile, stick gathering, tree cutting extravaganza along the side of a mountain, interrupted only by text messages from fellow Georgia fans feeding me the exciting news of the Bulldogs' stomping of the Gators. So, just for all of you out there who don't believe me, here is a picture of me with a chain saw felling my first tree as Brook shoves it over.



On Saturday night, we slept upstairs in the loft of the cabin, which is also the preferred sleeping location for Dudley, the incredible snoring dog. After about one hour of him trying to wake the dead at the foot of our bed, Janel asked me to relegate Dudley to the living room downstairs. Kate and Frank both told us Dudley wouldn't mind. So, there I was, scooping up the snoring machine and transporting him down the stairs in the middle of the night in the pitch black. Dudley didn't wake up or even flinch, for that matter. But he did keep snoring. All night. ... Here's the unsuspecting snorer on the trail.



My new friend Frank is one bad dude. He jumps out of airplanes and helps fight wildfires. He's also a great leader, understanding his crews' strengths and weaknesses. He quickly recognized my inefficiency with a hack saw and switched me to pick-up-sticks detail. If there's one thing I can do, it's pick up sticks. Cutting down the tree with a chainsaw was my reward. I'm hoping to do more of that in the future. Now, before you freak out and think I've abandoned my environmentalist activism, thinning trees is actually a healthy thing for the environment.

On Sunday, we went for a hike with Frank and his wife, Kate, in the Boise National Forest. I forgot the baby carrier so Frank graciously requested to help carry Faith. We traded her back and forth--and as you can see, Faith made a new friend, too.



We had a chance to take in some of the beautiful Idaho mountain scenery, including traipsing through some early season snow.





On the way back, I had one of my favorite fatherhood moments to date when for the first time since Faith was an infant, she fell asleep in my arms like a sack of Idaho potatoes. I think she slept on my shoulder for at least a mile of the hike before I placed her in her car seat. She still didn't wake from her slumber.

Faith and Alphonso, the Bear!

So, poor little Faith has been so sick this past month! She has had cryptosporidia (a water-borne parasite) and had to go to the emergency room because she was not quite herself--she ended up having a 104 degree temp and a viral infection that just needed to resolve. Well, at the emergency room, everyone was so sweet to her, and the nurse gave her Alfonso the bear. When she was sick, she held very closely to this little bear. Now, she loves him, but is busy feeling better and busy tending to other activities. Here is a picture of her with Alfonso (named for St Alphonsus hospital that we went to).

Man Tag

MAN TAG:

1. Who is your man? Jason

2. How long have you been married? 5 years

3. How long dated? 1 year 3 months

4. How old is your man? 33 today!!!

5. Who eats more? I do!

6. Who said “I love you” first? Jason, 5 months before I did:)

7. Who is taller? Jason

8. Who sings better? I do

9. Who is smarter? Hmmm.. that is a toss up....in some things he is smarter, some I am.

10. Whose temper is worse? toss up also

11. Who does the laundry? Both...in this stage of marriage he does most of it.

12. Who takes out the garbage? Jason... but Heather, I have to remind him:)

13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do, when your are laying down.

14. Who pays the bills? He does!

15. Who is better with the computer? Jason

16. Who mows the lawn? Neither, we are in an apartment!

17. Who cooks dinner? 99% of the time, I do! I love to cook!!!

18. Who drives when you are together? Mostly, Jason

19. Who pays when you go out? Usually, Jason

20. Who is most stubborn? Probably me! But he can definitely be stubborn at times too:)

21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Jason, but sometimes me!

22. Whose parents do you see the most? Ummm...probably my parents, my whole family lives in one spot, so it makes it easier to see every one on the same visit!

23. Who kissed who first? Jason kissed me! the nerve!

24. Who asked who out? Jason asked me out.

25. Who proposed? Jason, at Jake's icecream place!

26. Who is more sensitive? Me, but he is pretty sensitive for a guy.

27. Who has more friends? He does has a lot of people he keeps in contact with, I mean HUNDREDS!!! So, I would have to say, definitely him!!!

28. Who has more siblings? Jason does--he has 2, I have 1.

29. Who wears the pants in the family? Jason, I like wearing skirts at times.

I tag, Tia aka Christina!

Ten to Two ... and Tights

During our trip to Syringa, Janel surprised me with a guided fly fishing float trip down the Clearwater River. When the guide rolled up, I must confess that I was a bit bewildered by his appearance. It was kind of like Mikhail Baryshnikov meets Bill Dance. He was wearing tights underneath his shorts (it was 45 degrees), a strange complement to the pinch of Copenhagen smokeless tobacco bulging from his bottom lip. I didn't really know what to make of him and wondered if he was about to take me on Idaho's version of snipe hunting.

Nevertheless, I decided to climb into the boat with him and learn the art of fly fishing. One of the most important things I learned is that fly casting is like sawing a board while flicking your wrist between the 10 (on the back cast) and 2 (on the foreword cast) positions. I did OK, but started getting the hang of it when I switched from using my right hand to my left hand. (Being ambidextrous, it's difficult sometimes to decide whether the left or right is best.) Here I am in action.



But then the jokes started coming. At least, my guide called them jokes. I would respectfully call them type casting fables. And when he found out I wasn't a Mormon (Idaho has the most Mormons per capita in the U.S.), he started telling Mormon jokes like they powered the boat. That's when I began pondering just how cold it would be to dive into the water and swim for shore. But I thought better of it and tried to switch the subject.

While I didn't catch any fish, I did get a great philosophy lesson from my tight-wearin', snuff dippin', fly fishin' guide. Some of the things I learned can't be repeated (what happens in the mountains of Idaho, stays in the mountains of Idaho), but most of what could be repeated isn't worth repeating. Maybe next time I'll get a guide who will just help me fish in peace.

Fly Fishing, Flags & Fall

Since we've arrived in Idaho, I must confess that I still feel like I did in the seventh grade when I started attending a new school. It's awkward. You're trying to fit in, hoping people don't notice the big zit on the end of your nose. These days, it's hoping people don't notice I talk like I just walked off the set of Gone with the Wind. But, frankly, I ... digress.

This weekend, Janel and I headed north to Syringa, a small community nestled on the Clearwater River, to celebrate our five-year anniversary. Faith decided it wouldn't be fun staying home alone, so she decided to join us.

On our way up to Syringa, we made a pit stop in New Meadows, population: 543. While I am accustomed to watching Janel stop conversation in a room when she walks in, I'm not accustomed to having that happen for myself. But while trying to turn in my comment card at the BBQ joint we stopped at, I moseyed into the bar where four ranchers were yukking it up with the hostess. Suddenly, their laughing stopped and they all stared at me like I was a three-headed cow. I couldn't figure out why until I walked outside and looked down at my hands. Janel took this picture of me outside the restaurant. Can you figure out why they stopped talking?



It's probably not everyday they see a man with what appears to be a giant, fluffy pink purse. In fact, it's a floppy seat for Faith when she sits in a highchair, but I understand the confused looks now.

We drove for what seemed like forever. And I must admit that at 32 years old, I'm just now realizing how vast our planet is. Several years ago, I stood on the equator near Quito, Ecuador. On our road trip, we posed for this photo at the 45th parallel--halfway between the north pole and the equator.



When we finally arrived in Syringa at our cabin, the view was surreal. Wispy clouds had drifted down to our level and were climbing up the mountain. Check out a view of the mountains just above our cabin.



The last thing I noticed before we entered the house was the presence of a tattered Confederate flag flying on a fenced property near the cabins. I couldn't believe it!



Idaho didn't even receive statehood until 1890, so what in the world was this guy thinking by flying it high over his double-wide? Who knows.

And while you're probably bored--or still in shock that I would carry a giant, fluffy pink purse-looking contraption around--I'll just tantalize you with the topic of my next post: Janel's gift to me of a guided fly-fishing trip down the Clearwater River. Oh, the stories those guides tell!

Old pictures

So, I found these two rolls of film that had not been developed. I was wondering, "What is on these rolls?" and for the life of me, I couldn't remember. So, I went ahead and had them developed. On one roll of film, I had taken pictures of our Spain trip 2005, in celebration of my completion of the big PhD. They were beautiful pictures and made me want to go on another trip, but then again, everything makes me want to go on a trip....I love adventure, relaxing, seeing and experiencing new things and new cultures.

But, the next roll of film was, by far, my favorite. It took me back to the fun and carefree days when I lived in sunny California. Back then, life was simple. No worries. Sharon and I lived in an apartment that backed up to a used car lot (I jokingly call 'the ghetto') and substitute taught in schools in the ghetto. I also tutored after school. Making money/saving money was not a goal, it was just a way to pay the bills. In the meantime, I lived life fully. If I thought I could afford to take a day off from subbing, I would take the day off and go on an adventure. The adventure would be either hiking in the mountains to enjoy God's creation (45 minutes away), going to the beach to surf or read or be with God(45 min away), biking around town, going to the park to read, walking to Whole Foods (about 4 miles away), whatever! It is so easy to forget that life should be carefree and simple like that. Yes, I have more responsibilities now, but I am not going to use those as an excuse to not live a free life God wants me to live, enjoying his presence, his beauty in nature, and his fellowship he wants me to have with others. Living in Boise, ID has made it simpler to get back to the bare basics of life, for me. Here are some of the pictures I found on my roll of film. It was a time that Tia came and visited and Sharon, Tia and I went surfing!

Elk, Snakes & Deer

So, I know everyone thinks we live in the sticks now, but seriously, we live in the big city--it's just that the sticks like to come to us. Like last week, for example. I'm riding to work on my bike and I find out that I better beware of a big elk on the loose. Now, the only thing I know about Elks is that they have many lodges in the South where I used to live. But a real elk? I was hoping I would come across him on my morning bike commute to work. That's him in the picture above. He didn't last long before some Barney Fife police officer shot him.

Then on my way home that day, I almost ran over a snake. I say almost because I actually slowed up when I saw him and put my feet in the air like a little girl and squealed. I quickly turned around to see if anyone saw my scaredy-cat act, but I noticed only a couple of squirrels.

Less than a half a mile later, I passed a handful of people acting extremely strange along the banks of the Boise River. I slowed down to see if I could figure out what was going on before I saw a huge deer panting for water in the river. It was great.

OK, so there's still traffic on my commute in the mornings. Those Broncos and Jaguars driven by angry and rude people in metro Atlanta have been replaced by elk, deer and snakes, who have no desire to cut me off or flip me the bird. Now, if I can just find that orange vest of mine ...

Faith's 1st Birthday!

Faith's birthday was actually over a week ago, and I am just now getting to post pictures. Here is a picture of her a year ago. Wow has so much changed in a year! See how much she has grown!



We celebrated Faith's birthday when my parents came into town, so the actual DAY of her birthday, was pretty low-key. In the morning we took her to the Boise Zoo. She loved looking at the animals. Here she is with the leopard and sitting on a baby tiger:)




Ok, so it is not a REAL baby tiger, but she obviously thought it was fun anyway. The main reason we went to the zoo was because they had a special butterfly exhibit. Faith LOVES butterflies, even as a tiny baby she had a butterfly mobile above her crib which would entertain her for long stretches of time. This butterfly exhibit was awesome! Jason had two butterflies riding on him the entire time he was in there. Faith even had a few land on her. Even though she looks serious in these pictures, she really liked the exhibit.




Last, but not least, she opened some boxes that she had been sent in the mail. And, of course we gave her some books (she really likes books). Here is a shot I have been trying to capture for some time now. Whenever I ask if she wants to eat or more to eat, she makes this cute, adorable face.


After capturing the picture of her doing her sign for more to eat, she then decided to change it to sticking her tongue in and out, much like a lizard. What a silly one year old!

Poses & Bees

Our Labor Day weekend consisted of the usual outdoor activity as well as some interesting happenings indoors. In leaving Atlanta, I was happy to escape the Yellow Jacket fans who whine incessantly about how their football program isn't as good as Georgia's because of their rigorous academic standards make it difficult to lure the same caliber of athlete to their campus. The only thing more obnoxious than Yellow Jacket fans are actual yellow jackets, which besieged our Labor Day picnic in grand fashion. I know they may seem like odd pictures, but I had to include them to accurately depict the swarm surrounding our food.

Most of my timidity with yellow jackets surrounds the painful memory in my childhood when our beagle stirred up a nest of the critters which descended upon me like the paparazzi on Paris Hilton. Playing with my dog and my dad a block and a half away from our house, my dad chased me home, beating the yellow jackets off of me with his t-shirt as I screamed in agony. That's one day I'm sure the neighbors looked our their window and thought, "At least we're not rednecks like the Chatraws." I'm also sure that it started a rumor mill like the time my mom pulled me out of a baseball game we were winning by 20 runs because my blood-thirsty coach wanted to squash the other team. By Sunday at church, the word on the street was my mom had cussed out the umpire. (I smarted for a week because I never got my post-game soda.) But in the aftermath of our yellow jacket attack, I never heard any rumors of a redneck pastor whipping his son with a t-shirt for two blocks--so I'm guessing the neighbors were all inside watching Jerry Springer that day and couldn't distinguish reality from the TV.




But I digress ... I tried to highlight some of the yellow jackets so the picture doesn't look so weird. Look for the red checks ... I counted 10 and 3. Can you find more? Pretend it's a puzzle in the newspaper and everyone will think you're really smart if you find more. Just be sure to comment with your description of where the extra yellow jackets are.

Now, on to more fun things ... like family portraits. When I was younger, family portraits were on the same level of going to the dentist. Some strange photographer tried to make me laugh by making jokes about my girlfriend, which I didn't have. However, this time I went with a good attitude and had a great experience for Faith's one year pictures and our family portrait. And I was doing pretty good until the photographer forced me into some cheesy poses. When I walked into the studio, I snickered at some of the horribly cheesy photos some dads took with their children, unbeknownst to me that moments later I would assume those same poses. Fortunately, Faith would not comply as she scuttled away looking for something to put into her mouth. (foreshadowing) You might think I was pinching her, but think what you like. I was just happy there were no such cheesy portraits for us to even consider buying.

Later on that day, Janel took some pictures of Faith in her classic pose: putting something in her mouth. We decided to cool off along the banks of the Boise River from the torrid Labor Day heat when I dipped Faith toward the water. Little did we realize she was preparing to battle Goliath by picking up five smooth stones and putting them into her mouth. Many people have commented about the size of Faith's cheeks--now I believe it is quite possible that there still might be a rock or two in there causing the irresistible bulges on both sides of her face. Enjoy!

*Isabella~Consecrated to God *Faith~Firm believer

Faith was dedicated Aug 26, 2007 at our church in Boise. Pastor Tri and Nancy, Jason, me and my parents were all there and were able to pray over our little blessing. Faith's first name is Isabella, which means "Consecrated to God". I pray all of the time, that I will to give her over to God and trust him with her life. God has given her to us to raise and I am so very thankful for that.



In a way, I feel like Hannah in the Bible (I Samuel 1--note: it is the 9th book of the Bible, 1st chapter). God gave her Samuel after she wanted a baby so badly. She made a promise to God that she would dedicate Samuel to Him. So once Samuel was weaned (probably around 3 years old), she went to the temple and gave Samuel to the priest, Eli, so that he could serve God. What gratefulness, what sacrifice and what love!!! I really feel like, as a mother, I need to follow in Hannah's footsteps. I don't mean that I need to give Faith away to a priest, but I do mean that I need to trust God in her life. I need to seek God as I raise her and pray for her daily. I need to cultivate my relationship with God, so that I can better understand his love and better model what I know of His love to my daughter. Trusting God with her life starts early on when she is a baby, but I am sure it gets more difficult as she enters adulthood. Right now, she needs me to survive. And I cherish every moment, because I know it won’t last—but that is ok. Later on, as she gains more independence, she will need me less. And I think this is a gradual process. As she needs me less and less, I pray that she will rely upon God more and more. I know that it is very difficult letting go, but I want to be able to do this freely and without worry, because I am leaving her in the best hands possible—Jesus’. When Faith becomes an adult, I want her to have the ability to make healthy decisions, seeking only God’s approval and not my or anyone else’s approval. This is my prayer for my daughter’s life. It is a simple prayer but needs the power of Jesus to execute. Again, I Samuel is the 9th book of the Bible and the 1st chapter of it tells of Hannah’s story. And I think it is pretty neat that Faith was born on 9/1/2006.

The Idaho Western State Fair

So, my parents came and surprised us with a visit for Faith's dedication and for her birthday celebration. We also went to the state fair and here is a little video of our time there!

Soccer in Boise

This weekend was jam packed with excitement, beginning with Janel's parents' surprise visit to Boise--well, it was a surprise to her since I was in on the little secret from the get-go. You must go to great lengths to surprise Janel; however, I believe her little investigative personality (one which is already emerging in little Faith) likes to solve the mystery of surprise. But this one left her baffled and dumbfounded.

I'll let Janel have the honors of sharing about our adventure to the Western Idaho State Fair (yee haw!) and Faith's dedication at church, but I couldn't resist from posting this little family portrait first. Now, never mind that the horse looks like someone just dumped a gallon of Texas Pete hot sauce into his bucket of oats and that I retook this photo from one that we were snookered into buying at the fair--it's just plum cute. I was almost waiting for Faith to toss her hat and give us a big whoop!



Now, I know nobody cares about my soccer league I'm playing in here in Boise, but I feel compelled to write about it, much like I journaled about my sandlot exploits in first grade while living in jolly old England. They usually consist of a sentence about how many goals I scored and that we won, which happened to be the most important thing to me as a child and has followed me into my adult life. At the ripe old age of 32, I'm beginning to realize that winning isn't that important--that's what all the losers say, right? But the real reason I'm writing about it is because Janel's dad, Ed, took some of the best action shots of a recreational soccer game I've seen in a long time. And since they happen to be of me, I thought I'd post them here.



Don't get too excited just yet. There's no happy ending to this picture because pulling my leg back like that took about as long as it did for communism to fall in Russia. So, by the time I made my perfect strike, aiming to curl the ball around the ranging keeper and into the left corner of the net, he was in position to make a diving save. Oh, well. I probably should've passed the ball to my open teammate seen in the far right corner.



This other great action-stopping photo by Ed captured a guy fouling me from behind. You get yellow cards in most leagues for such a challenge, but in the three-inch, jungle-thick grass we play on in Boise, chances are that you just tripped on the grass long before another player slid in and challenged you from behind. However, I am an actor and managed to roll around and grabbed my knee to earn the foul. It made me happy to know that good gamesmanship lives here, too.

And, oh, yeah ... I didn't score a goal and we lost 3-1.

Faith's Saturday

Here is a video of what we did on Saturday. We are enjoying living here in Boise so much. There are so many outdoor type things to do and it is such a family friendly city. This was Faith's first dog show (and mine too). Half of the excitement was getting there. I definitely got a workout pushing her in the stroller while rollerblading. Faith had fun wizzing by in her stroller. And it was so cute that she clapped after every dog came down the runway...but she clapped about 5 seconds AFTER everyone else was done clapping:) Enjoy!

Flat Out of Luck

Today was another rough day on the Green Belt, as in flat tire No. 2. And in the immortal words of one Thomas Magnum, I know what you're thinking. Jason, stop driving over nails! ... Well, it's not nails--it's Idaho brambles the size of tennis balls. Maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but apparently, I haven't learned that those are common in these parts.

Last night when I was in Fred Meyers searching for a replacement tube, we'll call him Joe from sporting goods tried to give me some helpful hints about the best way to fix flat tire No. 1. He said, "I would use the goop [aka "Slime"] unless you went offroading and picked up a bunch of those huge briars." He added that last part like there was no way I would be stupid enough to do that on a road bike. Just as he was launching into something else, I mustered up enough humility and said, "Actually, that's what I did." He paused and said, "Oh ... well, good luck!"




In Georgia, briars don't stick to your tires. In fact, you hardly notice them. Here, they're like small satellites orbiting the weeds. So, today my front tire went flat after I got to work for flat No. 2. I'm looking into some steel-belted radials for my road bike.

The Idaho Crawler

I know many of you want to know how Faith is doing. OK, I know she's never spoken two consecutive cognitive words to you, but she really does care how you're doing. Anyway, here is the latest video I made of her documenting her next exploits in Idaho.

Our New Life

When I was growing up, it was my dream to live in Atlanta. After eight years of living there--three of which were spent sitting in traffic instead of actually living my life--we began looking for green pastures. Honestly, pale green would do in order to trump the concrete jungle.

So, we settled on Boise, Idaho. It really wasn't that hard since to decide since it had everything we were looking for--a slower pace of life, a smaller community, a great church (the Boise Vineyard), and activities outdoor galore. After some prayerful consideration, Janel and I felt like this community is what the Lord had for us next.

Instead of fighting traffic in the ATL, these days I ride my bike 5.5 miles along the Boise River on the city's Green Belt. Here are a few pictures from our apartment in the morning as Janel and I sometimes get out the door early enough to watch the sun rise.







Janel took these shots. I especially like the first one of the sun cresting over the mountains of the Boise foothills with the biker speeding away.

So, check back in from time to time for updates on the Chatraw family in Idaho.