Road Trip, Movin' In, and Overdue Updates

We left California on July 7th and spent about a week on the road, visiting friends and family along our way. Final destination: St. Louis!

We enjoyed spending a few days with Aaron and Abby and seeing a few of the sites Colorado has to offer. We went to Red Rocks Amphitheater and drove the paved road up Mount Evans, one of Colorado's 14ers (elevation 14,258 feet). We also went to "The Table" worship service at Aaron's church for Thursday night worship/dinner.

At the top of Mount Evans--we did have to climb a bit to get up to this point at the very top. It was very windy and cold, but the view made it worthwhile!

We were blessed to spend some time in Nebraska with the Makelas--gotta love the small town hospitality! They gave us the 10-minute tour of the town and showed us around the church where Matt was assigned for his vicarage. Pictured here are Matt's wife Cassie and their two adorable girls.

In Topeka, Kansas we visited with Matt's aunt and uncle (who just recently moved!). It was so good to see family again--especially family we hadn't seen in a while. The Benders introduced us to Banana-grams, a fun crossword type of game.

We spent a night with Megan's parents before signing the lease on our new apartment and moving in.

Move-in went VERY smoothly! The weather cooperated (low 80s in July is pretty good for St. Louis!). We had all of our stuff out of storage and into our new place in just over 2 hours. We were very blessed to have so many hands to help--a big thank-you to Jon, Ruth, Matt, Joy, Ben, Mom, and Dad! And to Megan's sisters who helped with the unpacking and decorating. It's finally starting to feel like home. (Pictures of the new place to come... )

We spent some time in Red Bud after we moved in... Megan's dad hurt his back, (3 days in bed, an early morning trip to the ER, and several doctor's appointments later...) so the sisters decided to help continue some of the home improvement projects Mom and Dad had started. After some productive days of painting and floor preparation, Megan's sisters had to leave town, but we were able to stick around a little longer. We stayed busy doing some more painting, laying hardwood floors in the halls, and relocating sod to some bare areas of the back yard. But that's just the start of what Megan's parents have planned to do in the next few months!

Other exciting news for Megan's family is that Lani and Jon will be moving out of Mom and Dad's soon!! They are scheduled to close on a house near Jon's church in mid-August. Yay!

Still no job for Megan yet... but some hopeful prospects. Keep prayin' for us!