Spring at McDowell Mountain Regional Park

God's world at its best in the springtime!

Memories of Kansas City

We made the flight to Kansas City to be with Carla while she had surgery..that was the downer part of the trip. But all the rest was an upper--Carla came through her surgery with flying colors, now has been released by her doctor following her post-op, and we shared some wonderful times. Here is a picture collection of some of our good times! Many of Carla's friends came by for a visit, to play games, or bearing food--thanks to all of you. Meet "Missy" (Sprigg) Chvatal and 3 of her children...my Polish lesson taught me to pronounce her last name as Waddel--is that right, Missy? Missy and our daughters went through the Marshall MO school system together. The last time I saw Missy was in Las Vegas in 2005, when our family was walking down The Strip and passed Missy and her husband, who recognized us and spoke to us. We also had a visit from Janelle and her two daughters, Lauren and Presley, which ended up with games on the floor. I first met Janelle in early 2000s, when she came as an adult advisor on the Mission Trip with the Pine Ridge Pres youth to assist with a "Faces of Children" conference in Washington DC. Its always good to catch up with her and see her growing family. As I mentioned, Jerry did some work on Carla's yard (grass seed, fertilizer, and straw) before becoming immersed in the Big 12 Basketball Tournament. He loved being a part of the excitement and seeing all the basketball, even if things didn't go as he had hoped (and neither did the NCAA March Madness, I might add!) I was able to attend the championship game with him (loved the Chick Fil-a ad!) Carla's numerous adventures to New Orleans in the aftermath of Katrina have made a beignet-lover out of her. She cooked up some delicious beignets for our breakfast one morning. Carla will be in London/Edinburgh over her birthday near the end of April, so we had an early birthday celebration during her recuperating. The Britain magazine had pound-notes tucked in the pages for her to discover! During our time in Kansas City we were also able to spend some special time with Jerry's cousins, Jim and Jane, and visit with friends from Marshall MO who were in KC. We so enjoy being in Kansas City, since our relationship with that city goes back to the early 70's..its exciting to see what they have done with their downtown, and the new Power & Light District. We will be only three hours away in Wichita KS for the next year, while Jerry does an interim at Grace Presbyterian Church, so hopefully we will be spending some time -- we've already bought our Starlight tickets! We are grateful for all your prayers and support and expressions of concern during and after Carla's successful surgery. Thank YOU!

Kansas City, March 2010

Its early March and we find ourselves back in Kansas City, having flown in from Phoenix last Saturday. Sunday morning found us worshiping at Pine Ridge Presbyterian Church, where Carla serves on the staff. The young man with Jerry is Jason Brock, who is originally from Marshall MO, where we lived for 13 years. Jason's Dad was the principal of Marshall High School when our daughters were in school. Early during our ministry there, Jason was BORN..yeah, thats right...born...and grew up in that church. He is now married to Keely, whose father played the trumpet along with Jerry in the city band, and they are the parents of two precious little boys. What a treat to meet his sons and have a visit with Jason and Keely. The family of God continues to amaze me! We are here because daughter Carla had surgery on Monday. We can share with you the "before" picture as she was being prepared for the operation. You don't want to see the "after" shots! All went well and it was all done laparoscopically, which is a miracle in itself. Her housemate, Lisa, has had two surgeries in the past week and we were able to bring her home from the hospital on Tuesday. So the two of them are recuperating together. We've been blessed with friends who came to be with us at the hospital and others who have brought by yummy food, and all the prayers and good wishes via email and Facebook - thank you all. Such a considerate daughter--she intentionally planned her surgery to coincide with basketball to the delight of her Dad. His friend in Enid had an extra ticket for sale for the Big 12 Tournament. So Jerry did yard work all day yesterday to help Carla out, and now is getting his fill of basketball--of course he was disappointed with Mizzou's loss this afternoon but we all know he is having the time of his life. We will stay with Carla and return to Phoenix the middle of next week.