CMProbasco

Basque Dancing

2008-10-25T16:38:00.000-07:00

here are the kids dancing some traditional Basque Dancing. You would dance this when you are in the presence of a distinguished person. Watch Amaia and Joane - the two girls in front, they are the real thing.....

Fun Stuff and Farewell Dinners :-(

2008-10-25T16:16:00.001-07:00

Jon Larrea, Joseba, Chris on the Ferry to Seattle.

Chris helping some of the kids try "Dropping In" to the half pipe for the first time.

The hike with Rick and Lily.
Mireia and Amaia making food for the Farewell Dinner.
The Students pondering how small they should
cut the potatoes for the Tortilla they are making.

Ania posing with all the yummy food... Basque Salad, Bread, tomatoes, tortilla and steak :-)

Olga ready for her family to arrive at the table!

Mikel, Chris and I. Mikel came to Washington state this summer. Mikel's older brother Inigo, came to S.F. 3 years ago. His family is San Sebastian really supports our program Summer in the USA. Eskerrikasko Manolo y Arantxa!

Camp #1 Arrival, Club and Cabins

2008-10-25T16:01:00.001-07:00

Getting on the Bus (one of which broke down in the middle of the Oregon Desert...sweet)
The "Basque Corner" in the club Room at Wildhorse Canyon

Skate Ramps at camp. Club room...singing our hearts out!

Around the Dinner table.
Arm wrestle session in the Dude's cabin.

Camp #2 80's NIGHT!!!!!!!!

2008-10-25T15:50:00.001-07:00

80's night is a total blast! We start the night by a getting ready in about 20 minutes, then go to dinner with everyone dressed up, followed by an all camp dance! And then........we all jump in the pool with our clothes on! The students pretty much think they have died on gone to heaven on this night :-)
Ugaitz as "the Fonz"(in the Gold).
Chris as "the Disneyland Dad" and I.

After the Pool!

Camp #3 Dress up night, Dance Party and Farewell

2008-10-25T15:36:00.001-07:00

Crazy girls! Dance party the last night of camp. Look at all the luggage??!!

Seattle Day!

2008-10-25T15:23:00.001-07:00

The Seattle day starts off with a ferry ride over to the "mainland", a walk up to Columbia Tower (the tallest building in Seattle.

Then on to Gameworks, followed by lunch at Pacific Center and ending our day with a monorail ride to Experience Music Project by the Space Needle! So fun!!
Myself, Sunni and Jessica (interns) and Bill Robinson counting students and money as we head over to Seattle on the 7:30 Ferry (too early to be counting money.....or anything for that matter!)

Welcome to the USA part 2

2008-10-25T15:10:00.000-07:00

Kids arrive at Seatac airport to a sea of families.

The next day they are here the all attend a "welcome dinner" where they learn fun American games and get a chance at good ol' American Food!

Welcome TO USA

2008-09-01T11:09:00.001-07:00

We have resurfaced from the underwater ocean of Summer in the USA!

2008-08-05T12:36:00.000-07:00

Okay, we are back to real life!! We apologize again for the delay. I am sure you are beginning to notice that we aren't good at updating the blog when we are really busy. I know it's a lame excuse but it's the truth :-)

Many of you know that Chris and I work for an organization called Summer in the USA/Impact Alliance. "What is that?" you may be asking. Well, it is a language immersion program where high school students come over from the Basque Country for one month to live with American families and learn English. Part of their month here they attend a Young Life camp in eastern Oregon called Wildhorse Canyon for a week. Chris and I have been working as Area Directors this Spring under Bill and Jane Robinson who started the organization. There were 54 students who came to our area, 9 students were in Portland, and 20 were in Fort Wayne, Indiana for a total of 83 students (the most we've ever had). We find host families through local churches, which we call "home bases" and in our area we had 8 different home bases with 5-12 students at each base. Each home base creates a calendar with planned activities such as a welcome dinner, cultural activities, YL camp prep day/night, camp, Farewell Dinner and other various activities. Our real goal has been and is moving to Basque Country in October indefinitely to work as Summer in the USA workers.

To give you an idea of what we do, here are some of our responsibilities included this Spring/Summer: Plan, administer, and train the 8 Interns prior to and while the students were here with a 3 day training session and bi weekly discipleship meetings, Help the coordinators from each home base with trainings for their host families before the students got here/problem solving while students were here, Attend/help with the various home base activities with the students, host one of the Adult Helpers, Jon Larrea at our house, Camp/cabin leaders at Wildhorse (my favorite part :-)), hang out with students going for coffee, shopping, skate boarding, etc., helping the families interact/get to know their student and lots of other things.

Now, that the students have left, Chris and I have been able reflect and think about all of the GREAT conversations we've had with the students, formed legit relationships with some of the students, fun memories at camp, good times with the interns, and connecting with the families. It has been a "really hard at times that it makes you cry, really busy, laughing your head off because you're so tired and a SUPER fun" kind of a month. We were blessed with really rad students.We can't wait to get over to Basque Country to follow up the students from this year. I will post pictures of it all. Thanks for hanging in there with us.

Basque Restaurant and Bakery in Bakersfield

2008-06-11T19:07:00.001-07:00

This is a famous Basque restaurant in Bako called "Wool Growers" we went in and spoke with the bartender Jose Mari, who is from Irun in Basque Country. By the end of our conversation he told us to stop in again before we leave and he would give some names of people to contact when we move there! SWEET!

This is the Basque Bakery, "Pyrennes" named after the mountains that border the B.C., it smelled like Heaven when we walked in! The family who owns it is Basque and has been in Bako for a long time now. So rad!

Mi hermana

2008-06-11T18:55:00.001-07:00

This is what happens when my sister and I get bored at the computer. I love you Erin, you are my favorite person to laugh with.
Comic book series.

On the Rollercoaster.

Felicidades!

2008-06-11T18:49:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary to my super manly, awesome husband whom I love so much. 2 years baby! Thanks Sharon King for remembering, it blessed us!

Cedar planked Salmon

2008-05-23T16:37:00.000-07:00

I love to cook however I am a terrible baker unlike my mom and cousin Carrie, but cooking is something that I have been somewhat gifted at. Maybe it's not really a gift, but just the fact that you don't have to measure in cooking :-) But last weekend in Silverdale, it was 90 degrees for 2 days. I thought that maybe I was in heaven seeing as it hasn't been sunny and over 70 since we moved up here. So due to the warm weather, we wanted to fire up the grill. One of my most favorite things to eat is fish, however it is one of the food items that I only know how to make two ways, on the BBQ or in a pan (the recipe that Jenni tought me with Tilapia, shallots and butter!) My all time favorite fish recipe is one that my friend Cate taught me one of the summers I was nannying for her. Cedar Plank Salmon with real maple syrup and soy sauce. It literally tastes like candy and not to mention it's a really easy recipe:

Soak Cedar plank for 2-4 hours in water (so it doesn't burn on the grill)
1 lb of salmon (copper river is really good!)
3/4 cup of REAL maple syrup
1/3 cup of Soy sauce
1/2 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of fresh pepper
whisk all ingredients in a bowl.

Place the Salmon on the plank, use a brush and brush on the liquid. Place plank with fish on a hot grill for about 20-25 minutes depending on how big your piece of fish is. Continue to brush on more of the liquid while it's cooking. Pull off grill when finished and you can keep the fish on the plank and serve as is!
Here is a picture of the rest of our meal, I also grilled some vegetables and made a yummy salad, I was trying to make a meal that wouldn't add to the heat we were having!

Our Second Wedding

2008-05-13T17:41:00.001-07:00

So, you know those people who have a 2nd wedding or a re-commitment wedding? Okay, well I never thought that Chris and I would be that kind of a couple not only because our "1st wedding" was just 2 years ago and it was the absolute best day of our lives haven't felt like we needed to re create it. However, when we were in Arizona visiting our friends the Griffins, their daughters Jillian (soon to be 7yrs, who is my new best friend!!) and Miriam (3 yrs.) asked Chris and I if we could get married with their conditions of: Jillian would do my make up and hair and Miriam would dress Chris. So, after much thought we decided we would like to engage on this adventure with our new "wedding planners/personal assistants" and make the commitment again.

See our wedding photos below.

Chris and his groomsmen (in his pockets) holding my "slippers"- Miriam, you are a professional!
The Bride walking down the aisle with my Personal Assistant, you can't really tell how much blush I have on in the picture but Jillian sure loves the BLUSH!!!
Jillian performing the ceremony complete with the ring and the Little Girls Bible!
Chris and I right before the kiss!! Jillian reminded us that only married people get to kiss!

And to top off the celebration, we had a "wedding party jump" on the trampoline that you see in the background. What a beautiful celebration, thank you Mimi and Jillian!

Joseba speaks Basque for you.

2008-05-01T22:34:00.000-07:00

For those of you who've never actually heard someone speak in Basque (Euskara) this is your big chance. Eskerrik Asko Joseba eta Joanna! (Thank you very much Joseba and Joanna!)

The Office

2008-05-01T22:28:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Basque Country was really good. We had great times and are evenmore excited than ever to move! All in good time. For now we are back in Silverdale at the office. Here's a pic of Megan and I after we created our new "workspace".

Hot Water

2008-04-22T13:35:00.000-07:00

So I truly experienced the saying "you don't know what you have until you've lost it" or rather my saying today was "you don't realize how much you will misplace blame onto your husband until your hot water doesn't work". As many of you know, we are staying at Gerald and Jenni's piso in Donostia, Spain.

All day yesterday I couldn't get the hot water to work to wash dishes. I just figured it was slow to warm up as it had been in days past and I put the dishes in the dishwasher anyways.

Today, however, when I woke up there still wasn't hot water. And I am ashamed to say that not only did I let the water run a long time to see if it would warm up, but I also totally thought that my husband was the reason for the hot water not working. While this had nothing at all to do with him and I didn't outright say this to him, this was in my mind. Still all the more reason to ask him for forgiveness! Thankfully, he forgave me.

I hadn't washed my hair for two days - don't be grossed out - but I can't wash my hair everyday anyways. So this led to Chris and I staring at the hot water heater that you see in the picture below. One thing about hot water heaters here in EusalHerria, the symbols are different. So, of course my husband being the awesome guy he is, didn't want to press to many buttons at first - he didn't want anything to blow up or something crazy like that. After 10 minutes however, we started turning knobs and whatever else looked like something that we could push. But to our avail, nothing worked and worse yet we couldn't call Jenni and Gerald because it would have been 12am their time. Thankfully there were some numbers on the machine. The first, however, didn't work - which only added fuel to my irrational fire in my mind, the second worked and so we scheduled for a guy to come tomorrow to see what was wrong with the water heater. And I emailed G and J to email us as soon as they could.

Our friends, Derek and Mandy, thankfully let us shower at their house!

At about 7pm, we received an email back from Gerald telling us about this "switch" that maybe was turned off. SO I RAN to the kitchen with his descriptions and turned the switch on and WE HAD POWER.

This little switch is not only in the weirdest spot in the kitchen where the water heater is located also, but there is NO LABEL!!!! See Picture

The water heater is on the left with pictures on it, the water heater "switch" is over by the sink, above the glass pitcher and next to the outlet, it's a cream colored rectangle!!! Tell me that is not totally bizarre!

And can you imagine that the water heater guy coming tomorrow and the only thing he needed to "fix" was to turn on the "switch"- how embarrassing that would have been. Thank you God!

Amigas de Summer in the USA

2008-04-22T07:02:00.001-07:00

We have met many students from working with the Summer in the USA program who have now become friends/family to Chris and I! Sunday night, we met up with some friends from Donostia and enjoyed fun conversation and dinner together. It is so crazy for us to see our friends all "grown up" now :-)

Ilazki and Chris, she was the first student to come to Redwood City, CA. She is now in college studying for a degree in Special Education. Her parents own a famous Bonito/Tuna packaging company called Ondartxo which many of you have enjoyed!!!

Eitziber - hasn't come to the US but is a friend of all the girls, I met her when I was here in summer of '05.
Amaia- just about to finish her nursing degree with a specialty in OB, she came summer '04.
Tania-in the same nursing program as Amaia but with a speciality in ER, she Came summer 2003, 2004 and 2 weeks with Chris and I in San Diego 2005.
Ilazki-came summer 2004 to Redwood City, CA with Chris.

Tania and Ilazki in Tania's car :-)

Break on Stage

2008-04-22T05:27:00.000-07:00

Break on Stage is a creative collaboration that was started by these 3 guys from our friend Joseba's town, Elorrio, one of whom Chris met while we were there. It's a venue for Break Dancers, Beat Boxers, Jump Ropers!, Graffiti Artists, Skaters and BMXers. Since it has become quite a large event, they have moved it to a stadium in Bilbo.

Chris, Jon, his cousin Asier, Marshall, Emily and I made the trip by car, including a metro ride, to the center of Bilbo this past Saturday. It was probably one of the coolest things I have seen. My sister Erin would pretty much be in heaven as she's down with the old school like that! Long Live Run D.M.C.!

People come from all over, mostly greater Europe but some were from Argentina, to perform. It was really cool to go to a public event here because it's different than in the U.S. For example, people leave their stuff in their seats because it is not that common for people to steal here, you can move down to the "floor" and no one gets mad, and you can bring food into the stadium!

The break dancing group who won was from Russia!!!? Hence the "russian push-ups" in the video :-)

This was the first group to perform. Pretty crazy, right?!!!

Emily, Marshall, Jon on the Metro in Bilbo.

Try this at home!

Tania

2008-04-22T05:00:00.001-07:00

Tania is a student that I met in 2004, the first year I was involved with Summer in the USA. She and her family have become like family to Chris and I. Her mom, Aurori, has worked as a pastry chef for one of the most famous bakeries in San Sebastian. Last year, however, she decided to open up her own bakery in a neighboring town, Hondarribia. On Sunday, Chris and I went to the bakery Iratxo = elf in Euskara, to sample the goodness and see the "family". After we visited the bakery Tania brought us up to a lighthouse (one of her favorite places) that overlooks the Ocean, the city of Hondarribia, and the coast of France stretching out to the north. It's also where her boyfriend Inigo likes to scuba. Tania was telling us that Hondarribia is a town that is very traditional and very "Basque", so her mom always tries bake the traditional Basque pastries for her cafe and is also why she gave it a name in Euskara.

Tania, me, Chris behind the lighthouse.

Iratxo: the bakery

Aurori and her boyfriend, Isidro, behind the counter. The cakes that you see in the picture are typical cakes that Godparents give to their Godchildren.

Marshall and Emily

2008-04-22T04:55:00.000-07:00

Here is photo of the famous "prank caller" and his wife, great friends to Jenni and Gerald (and now to us too!), awesome English teachers, helpers to Txat Room, all around cool people, and much more! We met up with them on Sunday to enjoy the nice weather at Zurriola beach and watch the surfers.....

Around the Table

2008-04-21T15:05:00.001-07:00

I'm convinced that some of the most important things in life occur "around the table". Night after night in the Basque Country we've found ourselves around the table. It's a great place to be with old friends and new.

Sociedad = A Basque gastronomic society/meeting place.

2008-04-20T11:44:00.000-07:00

We felt really privileged when our friend Jon invited us to join him and his 10 best friends at the local 'sociedad' for an amazing dinner they had prepared for us. Until a few years ago this was only something that the men of the town did, hence Megan felt pretty lucky to be on the "inside". This has got to be one of the best ideas the Basques ever came up with. They even have an espresso machine. To top it off the place has someone come through at the end of the night to clean up.

While women are allowed to attend, it's still only the men who are allowed to cook. Megan thought that was a pretty good arrangement.

The Old and the New

2008-04-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

Our friend Jon Larrea lives in a little town outside San Sebastian called Hernani. Jon is remodeling his apartment. Its cool how the Basques always keep up with the newest things while making sure to incorporate the old... hence this cool old wooden beam in Jon's remodeled apartment. God is doing something new here but there are hints of the old that enrich it so wonderfully.

Herriko Taberna = The Local Bar

2008-04-14T09:47:00.001-07:00

There is one of these in every town. The people of the town pay "dues" to keep the bar going It's the central meeting place for people in the town.

The inside of the Herriko Taberna (a super "basque" bar)

Chris and Joseba

Kafixne Bat Mecedes = 1 coffee with milk please (in euskara)

Joanna and Chris smiling for the camera :-)

Elorrio - a cool basque village

2008-04-14T08:48:00.000-07:00

The garden behind Joseba and Joanna's house. Joseba tells us that years ago Elorrio was home to Basque royalty and because of that many of the older buildings in the town are quite large; like mansions. Nowadays there are many apartment buildings and regular size homes like Joseba's.

Walking to Joseba's house with Ana Sancho, it's the white one.

Joanna and Ana making the yummy lunch!

This building is a bridge!! So cool.

On Sunday, we went to Elorrio, a small basque village in the mountains where our friends Joseba and Joanna live. We went to their house to eat lunch and then out to some bars for coffee and tea. It was an awesome day that started with lots of sun and ended in lots of rain :-)

Just Kidding..........

2008-04-13T15:05:00.000-07:00

Something funny happened the first day we were here. We are staying in the Griffins apartment while they are patiently waiting for their visas to arrive in the U.S. and missing them desperately. So I was on the "U.S. phone" (you can call a US # and it goes through the internet to this phone) talking to my sister and all of sudden I see Chris panicked and running over to me and shoved the phone my way saying, "Dude, it's someone speaking in Spanish for the Summer in the USA, quick you have to talk to them, I don't know what they're saying" so I quickly told my sister to hold on and greeted the caller on the other end in Spanish and then my hello was returned with, "Just Kidding, it's Marshall!". I started laughing hysterically and told Chris it was only Marshall, then he started laughing too and handed the phone back to him. There is something that happens to a person when you answer the phone and the person on the other line is speaking Spanish and you don't know how to communicate. This is just the beginning for Chris as I know that both he and I will continue to feel panicked and make lots of mistakes once we move here whether you know the language or not. The above picture is a re-enactment of Chris's face :-)

Marshall and Emily are this rad couple from SoCal who came to Euskal Herria to teach English at an English academy. They have been great friends to Jenni and Gerald, helped out with Summer in the USA, babysat the Griffin kids to give Jenni and Gerald a "night off" and now friends to us! Shout out to Marsh and Emily- you guys RULE!

what do you do when.......?

2008-04-13T14:59:00.000-07:00

What do you do when........ your husband is a skater, you both are really bored, you have a lot of time to get to the terminal and there is a REALLy long carpeted hallway at LAX airport?

you skate it!

Ode to San Diego..

2008-04-13T14:25:00.000-07:00

Chris and I took a break from our crazy lives to San Diego the first week in April. This was our Christmas gift from my parents and sister (THANK YOU)!!! We had a blast hanging out with our friends from our bible study, connecting with my cuz carrie, her hubby and their new baby Annika, visiting the beach where we got engaged, Chris surfing with our friend Jesse, eating yummy greek food at our favorite restaurant, attending my friend April's wedding, running into people we actually know, watching movies with Chris's parents, eating Stardust donuts, Chris reading his new book, "What's so great about Christianity" that his mom treated him to and I enjoyed as much time as possible at the pool. It was such a fun trip for us. It was a blessing to stay with Chris's parents (Thank you both too!). We haven't been back to San Diego since we moved last August, which was too long. We both realized that we love San Diego maybe a little too much and it's a good thing that we are moving to the Basque Country :-) Here is a picture of some of our friends from our bible study at Miguel's in Coronado, a picture of the Growth Group girls at April's wedding, and my awesome "new Mom" cousin and my sweet little (cousin niece) Annika.

San Diego we love you!

Peanut Butter and ...................?

2008-03-31T16:13:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, I LOVE PEANUT BUTTER! So when our friend Joseba from Basque Country came for a week to the United States, we tried to introduce him to peanut butter. To our surprise however, he already had tried peanut butter and has even eaten it a couple of times. I was very excited to hear that he was a fellow P.B. lover and asked him about peanut butter and jelly. And his response was, "that is wrong!". Apparently in "british" English, jelly = jello. Peanut butter and Jello....sick. Once we got over that issue we explained how in the U.S., one of the most common things to eat as a kid (and still for Chris and I) was peanut butter and "jam", he still thought that was gross because where he comes from, peanut butter is a savory thing that you eat with LETTUCE or CUCUMBERS!!!!!!!! Can you believe it? And he thought PB&J was gross. To top it off, he told us that a common dessert to eat at a birthday party is jello and ice cream........ whoever created that must have been crazy.

Silverdale, WA

2008-03-20T16:55:00.000-07:00

To give everyone an idea of where we live now, we have included a map link: CLICK ON THE TITLE: SILVERDALE, WA (it's in blue) and it will take you straight to a MAP!!. Silverdale, WA is kind of a hard to place to imagine because when you say Washington, most people think of Seattle....or maybe people think of George... Anyways, Silverdale is our new home yet again. While Chris has thoroughly been enjoying everything about it here, I am beginning to see all the great things too.

For example:
- People are actually nice here, people don't try to cut you off in line and make really loud sighing noises when you ask the grocery clerk how they are doing and start a mini conversation.
- The cops really will pull you over for speeding, not like California.
- There is water everywhere and really tall trees everywhere.
- A lot of people still have farms here and grow actual food (that locals get to buy- yay :-) ).
- There is a really cool mini horse farm that Chris and I love to drive by and watch them run, it's a RIOT!!!
- You can have a farm and waterfront property on the same LOT!
- Houses seem GINORMOUS compared to California.
- Starbuck's isn't that cool here.
- Clouds and rain are cool because they don't last long and they usually produce a Rainbow!
- The air is really clear here.
- You can drink the tap water and it's really good.
- Less people, not as busy, boats.
- The Summer in the USA office is really cool!! The windows face the water!
- Driving a Jeep feels more appropriate.
- There are many reasons why Silverdale is cool so you will just have to come and check it out for yourself.

pause

2008-03-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

So it has been over a month since we last blogged. We apologize for being "those people who never update their blog".

We have since recuperated from sickness, spent a weekend with my sister, sold everything we own in garage sale #4 since we've been married, spent a weekend at Yosemite, stopped in Portland to visit with our favorite 2 nephews and moved to Silverdale, WA.

Chris and I are excited to be up here, however the rain and ice on the windshield this morning will take some adjusting to. Pictures will soon follow.

No more SICKNESS in heaven!

2008-01-24T07:47:00.000-08:00

Well, the blog doggy has been sick. I was feeling kind of weird off and on last week but then on Sunday it hit me like a Mack truck. Fever, cold, stomach, head, chest all at the same time. Fortunately we've had enough people on the trip to cover the presentations for this week. And again the Lord has given us more than we planned on. Another blessing is that Megan didn't catch it yet! Pray that she doesn't either. We have a big parent meeting and reunion tomorrow night and then four presentations in France on Monday. (This is a picture of us with kids in Bergara last week.)

"La Tamborrada"

2008-01-19T13:13:00.000-08:00

In Donosti (San Sebastian) they hold an annual festival commemorating the humiliating defeat of french occupying forces long ago.

"At midnight, in the Konstituzioa plaza in the "Alde Zaharra/Parte Vieja" (old city), the mayor raises the flag of San Sebastián. For 24 hours, the entire city is awash with the sound of drums. The adults, dressed as cooks and soldiers, march around the city. They march all night with their cook hats and white aprons with the March of San Sebastián." - taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Sebastián

It's 10:27 at night here and we are counting down to midnight in the Griffin home. At midnight we'll hit the streets (if we can stay awake) with the entire city...

(5 days later...)

Well it definitely was an experience we'll never forget. The entire city raced on foot, bike, car or bus to the city square in the old part of town (see picture above) to capture the opening ceremonies. Megan and I boarded a bus already jam packed with merry Donostiarrians chanting songs at the top of their lungs. After a 10 minute ride we huffed the rest of the way alongside scores of people banging on plates and drums. Most were intoxicated, and we passed groups of young people sitting around mixing drinks as they waited for it to begin. As we got closer the crowds packed tighter as they jammed the streets leading to the square. By the time we got near the entrance to the square it was nearly impossible to make your way through. There were only 5 minutes remaining and we found ourselves caught up in a frenzied river of people determined to get to the edge of the square for a glimpse of the Tamborrada glory. The glow of lights emanating from the square begged to be seen by one standing in the dark corridor like streets. We ended up being carried by the river of bodies to the edge of the square just when it began. For a moment we were just taking it in but within 10 seconds more and more people began pushing into the already packed square and compacting those of us already there. It was a mob scene for sure. The pressure of bodies soon became so great that women began to cry. The whole crowd would push one way and then the other. Everyone knew they were helpless. Through prayers Megan and I were able to see a place about 10 feet away that wasn't as densely packed and slowly move toward it. We eventually made it to the side and started to feel like we would be OK. Then as suddenly as it started, it stopped and the crowd began to flow again... and we decided to flow OUT!!!

A picture after a thousand words.

2008-01-17T14:52:00.000-08:00

After speaking for 5 hours straight some photo booth shots (on the Mac) are a welcome relief (plus the kids think Apples are cool). In the last few days we've shared our presentation and summer program with over 600 students. Onati and Bergara had some really neat kids. They were warm to us and fun, which made doing the presentations a joy in spite of being exhausted. Now for some rest before we hit the road next week.

A tiny town deep in the heart of Basque Country-perfect place for making new friends.

2008-01-16T14:19:00.000-08:00

Today was an awesome day of presentations in Onati (own-YAH-tee). The kids were super responsive and well-behaved and the teachers were supportive and friendly. Our team presented in 4 different classes to about 90 students in all and with only 3 hours notice we had 12 parents show up at the parent meeting. Megan and I had a blast presenting together. Our second presentation was the best with lots of improv and good times laughing with the kids. Here's a pic of them watching our camp video at the end of one class. 5 more classes tomorrow in Bergara (Bear-gada).

Someone's in the kitchen with "Mimi".

2008-01-15T14:53:00.000-08:00

Gerald and Jenni's youngest daughter Miriam is just about the cutest thing you ever did see. Bottom line: she makes the picture. Gerald and Jenni's house is warm and cozy and full of love. We are so stoked to be staying with them instead of a hotel this time! It's a full house, with their family (5), Jenni's parents (2) and us (2). "Many hands makes light work", and good times :)

Luggage was lost, now it's found!

2008-01-15T14:36:00.000-08:00

Very cool that when we went back to the airport to pick up Jenni's dad today, Gerald looked in the window and saw my lost piece of luggage all by itself rotating around the carousel. God has perfect timing and I have more underwear. Let's get this party started. Tomorrow is our first day of classroom presentations.

We're off to see the wizard...Umm I mean Basque Country

2008-01-13T02:28:00.000-08:00

I wish the wonderful wizard of OZ was in Basque Country, well actually I don't. The song just got stuck in my head.....

Anyways, we are off in approimately 12 hours (which means that we should have been in bed about 4 hours ago:-)). We will post pics of yummy croissants, our friends Jenni and Gerald and thoughts when we get there, stay tuned..........

Album Cover

2008-01-10T23:04:00.000-08:00

The same "snorkeling night", Chris and his brother continued to spend a lot of time in the "photo booth" on our new computer but I didn't really realize how long they had been playing with it at the time because I was talking to Suzanne and his mom Susan at the table. And then I hear Chris say, "Meg, come here quick!" So I went over to Chris and he told me, "It's like the Metallica Black Album." Thanks to Photo Booth, you too can be in Metallica :-)

Deep Sea Diving

2008-01-10T23:00:00.000-08:00

If you don't own a Mac, you are missing out. There is this cool option called "Photo booth" where you can take a picture of yourself doing various things like snorkeling or going on a roller coaster ride, etc. It's a great thing to do if you want to kill an hour and laugh a lot :-)

Birthdays and Carebears

2008-01-10T22:28:00.000-08:00

Why are birthdays so fun? Well they are fun for so many reasons, one of which is the most important, birthday cake. I mean who doesn't love birthday cake? I sure do and so does our nephew Jackson. Jackson was born on Dec 30 and his new little brother Finley James was born on Dec 31. Those birthdays are going to be fun to celebrate! Jackson was already wanting to include baby brother Finley by sporting his "Big Brother" t-shirt the day of his birthday. Jackson's 2nd birthday was his first Birthday Party Experience with balloons, guests, cake, decorations and presents. "Grandma Baco and Aunt Menan" (as Jackson pronounces them) were blessed with the opportunity to make his super sick "bateboard" cake with ramp and boards! Grandma's famous recipe and Aunt Menan's decorating skills. Jackson, you're so cute!

My first birthday that I can remember, I think I was turning 5, was the ultimate birthday because not only did my super awesome mom bake me a Carebear cutout cake (the yellow one) but my parents also had a life size Carebear come to my party. I literally thought I was going to die I was so excited that I was meeting a "celebrity". I had my Carebear dress on also, just to make the party official :-) The was awesome and I think Carebears rule and so do my parents. Thanks mom and dad.

Christmas Snow

2008-01-09T23:37:00.001-08:00

This is the family photo that John Hayes (Chris's Dad) took of all of us :-)

(from left: myself, Chris, Suzanne with Finley in her belly, Jackson, John Francis, Susan, and John Hayes)

So here is a video of it snowing in Lake Oswego. I was talking to my fav cousin Carrie at the time about her Christmas Eve, so that's what you're hearing.

Autumn Soup

2007-12-19T22:40:00.000-08:00

Here is a recipe that a great friend, Marion shared with Chris and I. She made it for us when we visited her and her husband, Don last week. She used ground turkey instead of ground beef, served it with french bread slices and butter and it was DELICIOUS! WE hope you all enjoy!

Autumn Soup

1 lb. ground meat
4 cups hot water
1 can beef broth
1 can tomatoes or six whole fresh tomatoes
2 teas. salt
1/2 teas. pepper
pinch of basil
1 bay leaf
1 or more clove garlic
1 cup cut up celery
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1 cup cubed potatoes
1/4 cup barley

Brown meet and onions in large kettle. Cook about 5 min. Skim off fat.
Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer about 40 min. I
usually add potatoes about the last 20 min.. Sometimes I add more
carrots and potatoes but with barley you may not want to do that.
It really is more tasty the next day.

Daisy Duke

2007-12-09T19:55:00.001-08:00

Here is a sign that either your life is too crazy, you and your husband have become nomadic or that you are preparing to move to another country....... giving your pet cat to your parents :-(

Meet Daisy (a.k.a Domino), my parent's new addition and Duke, their dog have now become fast friends. Daisy is making the transition very well, however, Chris and I aren't. Duke has been enjoying the hissing and eating of her food, meanwhile Domino... I mean Daisy enjoys scaring Duke and loves all the free treats from my mom.

Sunset in the Twin Cities.

2007-11-26T15:54:00.000-08:00

We had a great week. Took a drive around lake Calhoun and junped out for a quick pic.

Boot Scootin' Boogie!

2007-11-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

We had some fun times this past week while visiting family and support raising in Minnesota, but perhaps the most memorable night was our little family outing to the Medina Ball Room. Oh yea, complete with a live band (The Dweebs), darts, bowling, "pull-tabs" (Megan won $102.00!) and all the popcorn you could eat.

Minne-snow-ta

2007-11-26T15:30:00.000-08:00

Megan's prayer was that it would snow while we visited her family in Minneapolis for thanksgiving... and it did! For all you Californians we've included a picture of actual snowflakes.

Dar Gracias

2007-11-20T20:47:00.000-08:00

Why is Thanksgiving such a great Holiday? I think because it is an entire day that reminds of all of what we are thankful for (including good food and family!) And more importantly, it's another chance to give thanks to the One who taught us how to be thankful and showed us what that looks like. So, we hope you have time to thank the Giver of all things and enjoy this awesome day!

Goodbye Hammy

2007-11-06T15:06:00.001-08:00

This post is a tribute to our "Hammy". Why do you call your vanagon "Hammy" you might be wondering right now. We call him Hammy because he is shaped like a hampster :-)

We said goodbye to him yesterday. It was a bittersweet goodbye as he has been one of Chris's great friends over the past 5 years but we knew it was time to sell him. He is going to a great home however, a hairdresser guy with green and yellow hair named Nemesis, his wife and their two year old son.

If you have never had the chance to ride or own a Vanagon, you are missing out! They are one of the greatest cars ever made. We loved having him and look forward to the day when we can have one again.

R.I.P. Hammy, we'll miss you.

Big and Little Pumpkins

2007-10-29T21:46:00.000-07:00

Just got back from an awesome week in the Northwest visiting friends in Oregon and Washington. The highlight by far was our little pumpkin of a nephew; Jackson. It was so hard to leave. Jackson you're our favorite!

remote control

2007-10-15T22:56:00.000-07:00

Spent the afternoon with Zack and Wyatt from the youth group. You know you're supposed to work with youth when you go to Big 5 and get super excited when you see a miniature remote control helicopter for sale... and you're riding your bikes back from the store and can't wait to see if the thing works. It does. Get one. They're only $28.

We finally got some professional photos taken of us...

2007-10-11T23:29:00.000-07:00

Here's a sample. Our friend from internship, Tara Malouf and her husband David, were really kind to take an afternoon and shoot some "real" photographs with her "really nice" camera. You can see more photos of us at flicker. Check her work out at redthreadphoto.

The New Blog

2007-10-11T23:19:00.001-07:00

So, we decided to convert to eblogger from wordpress mainly because of how easy it is to post pictures on this site. But we also found that after looking at the Griffins site every day that we actually preferred the layout as well. The only real downside is that with wordpress you can create different pages... whatever the case, we hope you like the new look and start a blog of your own. With this one being easier we should have A LOT my regularity with our posts! Pictures are coming....