We had fun staying at the Eddy's for a night, even if they weren't there.
Daisy got to enjoy Noah's toys...
and his books too!
Of course, the fun quickly ended when we discoverd a plumbing clog and lots of water in the basement. Dad and Darin (did I mention my parents came to visit for the day?) tried hard to fix it, but had no luck. Hope you guys were able to figure it out when you got home!
The Conference we were attending was held at the lovely Coeur D'Alene Resort. We got a great conference off-season rate and were able to enjoy our deluxe room for a very affordable price. I bet the place is just hopping in the summer!
Weird though, the bed was made with no fitted sheet, just a flat sheet tucked in. And then two more flat sheets: one below and one above the blanket. Daisy had a hard time sleeping in her pack 'n play, so we were grateful for the King size bed, that's for sure!
The view on Wednesday evening:
We took advantage of the free afternoon on Wednesday to take Daisy to the pool for her first swim. We had a 18-24 month swimsuit and coverup, which we figured would do just fine. And we bought a swim diaper at the hotel. So we were all set.
Daisy was excited when she saw the big big big bathtub that was waiting for her:
But once she got in the water, she wasn't so sure about the whole thing. It was a bit colder than the tubs she's used to!
So it took a little cuddling on the side with mama...
and a move to the bigger, warmer pool for some swirling around with papa and all was well.
She especially enjoyed being held by me while Papa would "hide" under water and then jump up at her. She giggled like crazy at this fun game of peek-a-boo.
I look forward to more swimming adventures together this summer!
but at least your sweet hubby lets you splurge on yummy room service. Something we NEVER do!
My dinner on Tuesday night...
This post for February 13.
Are you sick of my vacation commentary yet? Too bad, cuz I'm not.
Saturday morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast at the hilton restaurant. Actually, I wasn't super thrilled with mine. We had a coupon to get whatever we wanted, so both decided to splurge on the big ole buffet. The clincher for me was the cheese blinztes that looked so yummy. But yummy they weren't and neither were the eggs, pancakes or anything else I tried. The buffet's saving grace was the apple turnovers. Now THOSE were yummy!
Darin and I then bundled up and headed to explore Millenium Park. But although it was sunnier than the day before, we both decided we did not have hats thick enough to withstand Chicago wind. The park itself was pretty cool, and modern. Our favorite, of course, was The Bean--a giant sculpture made out of this awesomely reflective material. If you stand back far enough, you get this beautiful cityscape reflected in it. Men were working to polish the underside, but we still got a good glimpse of this innovative artwork.
Saw a couple fun sights on the way back to get the car (and after picking up a little souvenir for myself and a birthday gift for my sister Debbie--now she only has to wait 9 months to get it!).
Funky bike rack and really funky van:
Then we were off on our trek to Trenton, Missouri. For most of the journey, we drove along major highways. Saw some tornado damage, these sheds used to be all spread out along the field.
Did you know the signs along the highway are made to collapse in half if the wind is strong enough? How brilliant is that? A lot of the signs were still "blown over" and I was just glad it was on the other side of the freeway.
About 5 hours into our journey, I was eager for another chance to stop and stretch my legs. At this point we were off the main highway. When Darin spotted a sign for PASA park, we thought that was our ticket to a chance to toss the frisbee a little bit. So, we pulled off and followed the signs.
We drove for a few minutes, and then were directed to turn off the road and onto a gravel driveway. It was weird, where were we going? I laughed to Darin, "I hope we're not going somewhere where we'll get shot!" It really did look rather ominous.
We passed a house, turned a corner, and then happened upon some sort of clubhouse. It looked like a party was happening. But there was no park. Until Darin looked left and saw this beautiful shooting range:
Yup, turns out I had a bit of a premonition. PASA Park is the Pike Adams Sportsman's Alliance. And people there have guns. And probably wouldn't shoot us, but we weren't taking any chances! We hightailed it outta there laughing the rest of the way back to the road.
The rest of the journey to Trenton was uneventful. Before arriving on the doorsteps of Darin's grandparents, we stopped to eat at a Chinese restaurant in town. Good food, but we had servers who didn't understand a word of what we said, smokers sitting one table over (WEIRD to get used to after living in Washington), and a restaurant so humid at one point our waiter was squeegeeing the windows. Another good laugh over that one. Who knew there were cultural differences in our own country?
After getting lost and making a phone call, we arrived at the Allen's home, the home where Darin's mom grew up. We visited a short while, were shown around, and then headed to bed as the morning would dawn with a visit to Trenton Assemblies of God church.
I decided to skip the first session, since this speaker I'd seen at the Leadership Summit in August, and wasn't too impressed. So Darin and I had a liesurly check-out and then I enjoyed some time buying out all I could in the Willow bookstore.
I got into the auditorium in time to hear Rebecca St. James sing her song from the Narnia soundtrack. Although her's is probably my least favorite song on the album, it sure was fun to see it live (and to think about how I can make my little friend Danica jealous because that is her favorite track). And then she led a short worship set. Not as great as Matt, but I always appreciate some time to sing.
I was really looking forward to hearing from the final speaker of the conference: Bishop Kenneth Ulmer. He had amazed me at the Leadership Summit. In this case, I didn't mind at all if he gave the same talk. He is really gifted by God with his preaching. By the end of his 45 minutes he had the crowd weeping, clapping, jumping, praising, it was INCREDIBLE. I really can't due it justice to describe it on here. If you're curious, ask me next time we're together. And then I'll probably whip out the session DVD I purchased to show you.
That's it. Conference is over. Time for Darin and I to VACATION!
I think I'll tell you about the rest of our day in pictures. Hope your internet speed is reasonable, cuz there will probably be a handful.
Driving into the city we spot the Sears Tower, and the eL.
Crazy chicago drivers, that's for sure. But Darin got us safely to our hotel parking garage without incident. We splurged on a night at the historic Hilton. What a hotel! LOVED it.
Changed our shoes and headed out to walk the Mag Mile. Took some pictures of the river and the historic water tower.
We then paid the admission fare and waited in a LONG line to go to the top of the Hancock tower. Darin's classmate told us it was a better view of the city than the Sears Tower. We purchased the walking tour on headsets and I was really glad we did. It helped identify a lot of the city and gave us some interesting history as well.
Funny story: As you're waiting to go up the elevator, they take a picture of your party in front of a green screen. Once on the viewing deck, they superimpose you over a picture of the Chicago skyline and you can buy the shot. However, I was wearing a green hat that day, so the top of my head was missing in the picture, replaced by Chicago. Really funny picture. But I wonder if that happened to other people that day: being St. Patrick's day and all.
Saw the HUGE Lk. Michigan and stayed for the sunset as well.
The line back down the elevator was really long too. So we waited probably 30 mintues and entertained ourselves with some games we invented, with Darin winning most of them. Boy was it COLD when we got outside again. The wind was a blowing and I was NOT dressed properly. By dear husband lent me his coat and off we trecked to Navy Pier, which reminds me a lot of Seattle's Waterfront. Lots of shops and restaurants and tourist activities. We found a spot for a cheap dinner and checked out the really cool stained glass museum before heading home. If our feet hadn't been so tired we probably would have stayed longer in the museum. But it was free and had great displays, so you should put it on your to-do list if you're ever in Chicago.
After a long day, we took a risked our lives and took a taxi back to the hotel. Darin joked with the cabbie about how crazy Chicago drivers were and the man just laughed as he swerved in and out of lanes to get us to our destination quickly. I was glad to have my feet back on solid ground as we arrived in the hotel.
What is it with hotel showers? The water from this particular shower head shot out so fast and hard I thought I was being hit with tiny bullets if I was at the wrong angle. And yet, it still didn't have enough power to rinse out the shampoo from my hair. Not to mention the attack ghost of a curtain which gave me all of 2 inches of shower space to call my own. Needless to say, that was a fast shower.
After a great free hotel breakfast, Darin drove me over to the Willow Creek Campus. This place is HUGE, and really nice, and really helpful. Everywhere you turned there was someone to greet you, answer your questions, and get you headed in the right direction. Got registered and found a seat in the mezzanine (as opposed to the floor or the balcony--this place is huge).
Okay, so I've never been a huge fan of megachurches. Was always wary that their size meant that relationships weren't happening and that all their resources were being funnelled inward, rather than out into the poor, missions, or ministry. But there is something different about Willow. They have resources, a LOT of resources, but they use them wisely. And they make an impact in big ways. The opening of the conference was this great big musical number with a cast of over 50 all in fun costumes. And it had HUGE impact and got everyone really fired up for what was about to happen. And worship that morning was led by some really awesome people about my age, and 50 kids all in orange, who couldn't be happier to be singing and dancing and praising God. It was so energizing.
The opening speaker that morning was Bill Hybel's, the senior pastor of Willow. He's the other reason I feel different about this mega church. This man is genuine. This man is real. This man is passionate about leadership and passionate about the power of a local church to effect change in this world. I'm currently reading his book "Courageous Leadership" and am loving the things he has to say.
His session was basically a repeat (with some different stuff focused at the Children's Ministry level) of a talk he gave last summer at the Leadership Summit. Good stuff to be reminded of again. His premise was what he called, "A Holy Discontent". What is it that you see in the world that you get so fired up about, so emotional about, so broken down about? What is it you just can't stand anymore? There's a good chance that God feels the same way about it and that if you let him, he will use you in a BIG way to do something about it. Don't run from the discontent you feel, but embrace it and see if you can find God in it. "When God's heart and the human heart get aligned something supernatural happens."
After a break, we came back for session 2. Got a glimpse of what happens in Children's Ministries on Sunday Morning at Willow. Pretty cool stuff, I gotta say. Then, the director of that ministry at Willow took his turn to speak to us. Good session, not a ton of stuff that stuck with me, except this: "No matter what ministry challenge you face, no matter what your ministry forcast says, no matter what...remind yourself...God's not sometimes, but ALWAYS."
Had a great time at lunch visiting with CM ladies from California, North Dakota, and Nebraska. Good conversation regarding challenges and triumphs in our own ministries.
Came back for some more fun worship and a couple great Promiseland skits. Then, Reggie Joiner took the stage. He's the Family Ministries Director at North Point Community Church and has pretty much pioneered this idea of a family experience at church. There is some AWESOME stuff going on in their programs, and are affecting change in a lot of other churches too. Basically, they use the Disney concept to offer programs that appeal to both kids and parents. Their tagline: "Where kids bring their parents to church."
They are passionate that what happens at home with parents is more important than what happens at church. Church only gets 40 hours a year with kids, while parents have 3,000. And parents are really the ones responsible for their child's spiritual development. So, they're all about real partnerships between the church and the parents. Some good nuggets from Reggie:
"Two combined influences make a greater impact than just two influences."
"What would happen if the church really acted like and believed that the family was a viable influence...and what would happen if the family acted like and believed that the church make a difference in their family life?"
"What if both entities decide that both were incredibly important and both work together towards the same end?"
The last session of the day I had been looking forward to for month: worship with the incredible Matt Redmond. That man really knows how to lead you to the throne. I sang, I prayed, I wept, I glorified the God I love with all my heart. What a great way to end the day, and something everyone in that room really needed to experience.
Darin picked me up and after a visit back to the hotel, we went to dinner and found ourselves a real Chicago pizza. YUM-MMY. And then enjoyed some time relaxing in the hotel jacuzzi. Want one of those in my back yard. All in all, a great day.
I'm having a great time here at the conference. Learning a lot, getting inspired, trying to hone it all down to one main thing to bring home. Enjoying the time in the jacuzzi and out to dinner with Darin. Today we explored a store called "The Great Indoors" which was like pier 1 and home depot combined. Cool stuff.
Check this out. The first photo is of the Willow Creek campus (and when I say campus, I mean it, this place could be a college) yesterday when Darin dropped me off. And the second shot is when he picked me up this afternoon. Glad the snow has stopped this evening! Off to Chicago tomorrow!!! Happy St. patty's day!
Right now I'm supposed to be packing, but alas, I'm making a last post to tell you all how excited I am about this work trip/vacation. We're flying into Chicago tomorrow and driving to our hotel in Elk Grove Village. The conference is at Willow Creek Church in South Barrington. Friday night we're staying in Chicago itself (gotta get some St. Patty's day recommendations from my sister) and exploring the city. Saturday we'll drive the 8 hours to Trenton Missouri for a visit with Darin's maternal grandparents. Combining this vacation with a work trip makes this one really affordable for us. Looking forward to:
Darin was commenting last night how excited he was about our trip since we haven't been on a plane since our honeymoon 2+ years ago. But today I was realizing that I was on a plane between then and now when I went with my Mom to Colorado in January 2004. We went to visit my sister Debbie and her hubby Rich. It was an awesome trip, and one I really needed since December that year had been incredibly taxing. As I was thinking about that trip I was reminded how special of a husband I have, one who's willing to let me go and have fun, even without him.
For fun, a couple pics from the Denver trip:
I'm really looking forward to this trip. To reconnecting, getting away, 'making new memories. We'll have the computer and camera with us, I'll try to update as we're going along.
