A Taste of the South

Every once in a while I get a stark reminder that we really are living in the "south". This last week we had three workmen in the house for four days. As their time here drew to a close and I started to put things back in order one of them commented "Ah, your makin' it real purdy!" A quote of Jeff Foxworthy came to mind, "Ya know your a redneck when....." Any one of the three could have taken the place of the cable guy.
Today as we were out on errands we drove through a part of town on the south side I hadn't been by before and what did I discover???? "The Washin' Place" Think about it, hmm ...carwash? ...NO... appliance sales??...No ....Laundra Mat!!!! but of course. It should be located next to the "Filln Station" on the west side of town. There's always something new to keep us on our toes.

Birthday treat

We met friends at a restaurant in Tunica, MS for dinner on Timm's birthday, the ninth. It had been a long day starting with an early morning hospital visit an hour and a half away, then the funeral of a friends mother at eleven. It felt good to sit down and enjoy some time with friends at Jack Binion's Steak House in the evening. As birthdays go it wasn't a really memorable day for Timm, until, Bill asked if we'd like to take in a concert while we were in Tunica. He arranged for us to have great seats to see Olivia Newton John. She did a great show and then Bill gave us VIP passes so we got to meet her briefly afterward and even get a picture taken with her. Sorry we don't have the photo yet but wanted to let you know how the day went. Other highlights of the day were phone calls from our children.

You're doing it wrong!!!

So last night we had alot of trick or treaters come to the door. We enjoyed all the fun costumes and the adorable little ones. After several runs to answer the doorbell we started to know when someone was approaching by hearing them come up the front walk and would meet them at the door. Our inside door was open and the outside glass door allowed us a good view of the princess's, power rangers, ghosts, super heroes, etc... that were stopping by. With candy in hand I started to open the door as a little three year old boy dressed in armor approached. He rushed to push the door back closed and his parents behind him quickly explained that I was doing it wrong. They had repeatedly explained to him that FIRST you ring the doorbell THEN you say "trick or treat". After he properly rang the doorbell he was happy to let us open the door so he could carry out his mission according to his parents' instructions. When he's sixteen they'll wish he still followed directions so well.

Footprints in Sanibel

We had four beautiful days on Sanibel Island
just west of Fort Myers, Florida. We enjoyed
gorgeous sunsets, walks on the beach, watching
dolphins, shell collecting and card playing with
our good friends Glenn and Sue Meyer. We saw
a baby alligator, a coral snake, and a variety
of birds in their natural habitat at the wildlife
refuge. We sampled alot of great seafood and
headed back home on the only rainy day.
AAAAHH VACATION!!!

Hmmmm..::!! that reminds me of something !!

..::!! About a week ago during Sunday morning worship our children's choir sang. There are about 15 children ranging in ages from 4 to 10 who participate in the choir. They lined up in two rows in the front of the sanctuary and sang a couple of great songs. As the children started singing I heard a teen in the pew behind me comment, " looks like a cingular commercial". I silently had to agree as both rows of children were lined up in order of height. Too cute.

Following in the Steps of Two Pauls

Lee and I still suffer from a little jet lag, but we are also still feeling the greater affects of the literal, emotional and spiritual mountain top experiences of our 30th Wedding Anniversary trip, following the footsteps of the Apostle Paul across Greece and eastern Turkey, under the guidance of Dr. Paul Maier, Professor of Ancient History at Western Michigan University.

On our way we spent a day and a half in New York City. We had never been there before. We did a quick self-guided tour which (using the Subways and our walking shoes) involved Time Square, going to the top of the Rock (Rockefeller Center), visiting Ground Zero, viewing the Statue of Liberty from Battery Park City, and taking in an off Broadway show ("I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change"). Pictured above is the iron beam Cross which was a result of the Twin Tower callapse. It's draped with a fireman's coat.

We won't attempt to tell everything we learned and saw on our trip. It's too too much to share at once. Yet the following account and pictures give some brief glimpses of the trip. We left New York City (JFK Airport) in the early afternoon of August 15th and arrived in Athens at about 10 a.m. on August 16th. (Very little sleep on the plane). We immediately boarded the bus for Delphi in western Greece. Delphi was a great introduction to the history and culture of ancient Greece. Above is a picture of us with two engraved Gryphons. (Kind of appropriate, don't you think?)

Few of us (our tour had 94 participants) made it to the top of Delphi where an ancient stadium was built. However, Paul Maier (age 76) who was not only our guide but a tireless leader consistantly lead us to the top or the depths of every place we visited. (Temps were in the 100-110 range every day.)

After Delphi we traveled to northeastern Greece (near Thessalonica) where the Apostle Paul first landed in Greece. We visited Meteora, an area of high rock precipices which became home for Christian hermits and then monks and nuns about a thousand years ago. Evidence of the ancient caves and crevices which housed the hermits is everywhere. Twelve active monasteries remain perched high in the mountains of the area. One was the site shown in the 007 movie: "For Your Eyes Only".

Traveling past Thermopoli and Marathon we traveled south to spend three days in Athens. One of the literal and spiritual mountain top experiences was for me to read aloud Paul's sermon regarding the unknown God (Acts 17) on the very spot of Mars Hill where the Apostle spoke it. Behind me is the plaque with the passage in Greek.

We could see the Acropolis and the Parthenon from the pool area on the top of our hotel. It was an amazing sight at night! The cross in the center is an apparent "accidental" lighting affect which is viewed only at night from the angle of our hotel.

Greece is well known for its olives so, while visiting the Marathon battle site, Lee had to take a picture of the olives. We saw many olive groves in our journey. Olives are an essential part of every Greek meal, including breakfast.

We set sail for a four day cruise on the Aegean Sea as a part of our tour. The first stop was just a trendy tourist site, the island of Mykonos. The elite from all over the world come there for vacations.


We stopped for an afternoon on the island of Patmos (Where the Apostle John received the Revelation.) It is not really known where he resided there but we were able to tour the "very cave" in the Grotto where it is claimed he received the vision. We saw the "very hole" in the wall where John rested his head when he slept (gilded in gold) and a little hole in the wall he used to pull himself up with when he got up (gilded in silver). The ceiling was even split into three parts (the Trinity, you know), which "had split" when the angel spoke to John.
Following Patmos we went to the island of Rhodes and then to Turkey and spent an amazing day exploring Ephesus. (We have many pictures but the one we chose for here somehow got missed being inserted.)

Our next stop was the island of Santorini where our ship pulled into the broken cone of a dormant volcano. (The island exploded in 1536 BC and Plato alluded to it as the possible site of Atlantis.) You can see the lava dome even as we saw it from the top of Santorini's 1000 foot cliffs.

On the island of Crete we explored the ruins of the palace which belonged the King Minos and was the supposed home of the mythological beast, the Minataur, which stories claimed roamed the labarynth beneath the palace. We also saw evidence of ancient capabities among the inhabitants where over 4000 years ago they had piped running water and (pictured above) even hair curlers and hair pins for the enhancement of the their feminine appearance.

We concluded our tour by returning to Athens and immediately setting out to explore Corinth and then Mycenae and Agamemnon's palace. At Corinth, I again was asked to read. Here it was the account of Paul's first trial in Acts 18 (at the Behma which is where we are standing in the above picture).
We then flew back on August 26th to NYC and on August 27th flew into Memphis. At this writing we are exhausted, but also still exhilerated from our experiences. We saw so much, learned so much, and became aquainted with alot of new friends from around the country who traveled with us. We know God's Word is true, even if we do not see the external evidence of geography and concurrent history, but what an amazing experience to see these aspects of the Biblical story in person, too! Praise God, from whom all blessings flow!

Gramma time is a bit behind

So Gramma got four days with Nate, Eli and Ava while Ben & Kate were at a conference in California! Above left you may note the accomplished elephant trainer, the adorable , Ava. She gave Gramma the most wonderful hugs and bedtime rocking times. Below her are the famous puddlestomping brothers Nate and Eli. They took first place during recent competition in Woodbury, MN while at the park with Gramma and Ava. Next is Eli doing his imitation of Uncle Adam. He just needs to learn the phrase "What's up buster?"
But seriously, it was four of the most wonderful days this Gramma has ever spent. As for being a bit behind the times there was one day at the park where Ava was in a child swing and she reached out and hugged Nate cheek to cheek. As I was pondering the beauty of the moment thinking that I should have brought the camera along, Nate looked at me and said "Gramma don't you want to take a picture?" I replied, "I'd love to but I didn't bring the camera along to the park." Brilliant four year old that Nate is he then asked (knowing I had it along), "Why don't you use your cell phone!" Alas, this Gramma's cell phone doesn't take pictures so the moment went down in gray cell memory only. I can hardly imagine what the world will have in gadgets by the time Nate is my age but I'm sure he'll be up on the latest.

San Diego AGO-GO

After a week in San Antonio for the Pastoral Leadership Institute (a wonderful beginning to a four year growth plan), Lee and Timm went on to San Diego for the wedding of our Nephew, Eric Piepenbrink, to Catherine Henry of Dallas, and a family gathering for the Griffins (Ben gave the wedding message and His cousin, Jeff Meyer, officiated.)
While in San Diego we stayed at Lee's sister's house(the Ehlke's) and at a Ramada Inn in San Marcos. All the Griffins were together in San Marcos.

Attached are pictures from the gathering. Eric & Catherine made a beautiful couple, sharing a deep faith in God and love for each other.
















Lee and I got to hold Ava for much of the wedding reception. (Nate and Eli were in Illinois with Kate's parents.)

While in San Diego we toured the Aircraft Carrier, Midway, and saw the Reagon, Stennis, and Nimitz Carriers across the port from us. Lisa got a chance to sit in the Captain's Chair of the Midway, but still received no respect from her brother, Adam.

Lee and Greg shared a personal day at the San Diego Zoo (Greg got a picture of every animal there) and Timm and Lisa shared a simultaneous day at the Art Museum.

We also went out out to Point Loma and had a fantastic view of the San Diego harbor,

All the kids left on Sunday, the 9th of July, while Lee and Timm did not return to Tennessee until the 11th.

On the 22nd, Lee will be flying up to Woodbury to care for all three Grandchildren for a week while Ben and Kate attend a conference in California. What a joy, but pray for her! A 4, 2, & 1 year-old for four days without help!

JoJa (otherwise known as Georgia) Wedding

We had a quick weekend trip to Atlanta for Elizabeth's wedding. Busy, busy and fun!!! Definitely brothers!!!

Jay and Timm




Ginger, Kathy, Elizabeth and Blake Boswell, Jay, and Mike.




Liz and Blake Boswell
06-17-2006



sweet

A very special adventure

Two weeks ago we were privileged to have two days with Nate and Eli here in TN. We took walks, played at the park, played catch in the backyard and even spent some special time at the Children's Museum. We're not sure if Nate and Eli are leaning toward being doctors or firefighters but they certainly looked good on a motorcycle. Playing in water was a favorite...wonder what occupation that could lead into.... We look forward to more opportunities to explore with them and their sister in the future.

I have to share a little story from when I was in MN visiting. I got to go to the zoo with Kate, Nate, Eli and Ava. We paused mid adventure to check out a playground. After a few minutes on the slides etc... Eli crouched down to examine the pebble covered ground. He proceeded to pick up one small stone and then turned to walk away. I called to Eli asking where he was going. He totally ignored me and headed for his goal. I chose to follow and see what he had in mind. It seems that as Eli examined the pebbles he found one that didn't belong. He went straight to a nearby garbage can and put it in its proper place. Satisfied he turned around and was now ready to go on to the next section of the zoo. Thanks for the great outing and the lovely visit. I will always treasure having been able to watch Nate color Easter Eggs and see the great Easter Egg hunt and seeing them open special gifts and....oops.... you know us grandmas we could go on and on. (Thank you, Timm, for the airline ticket that made that possible).

Granma & Granpa for Two Days

We just finished two days of hosting our two oldest Grandchildren: Nate & Eli. Ben and Kate were in St. ouis for call day (Kate's brother-in-law received his call to Lancaster, California.) Ben met us half way on Sunday with the two boys. Lee took them back today (with the help of our friend, Dawn). Long day of driving, and too energy taxing days of keeping up with the boys, but what a joy! We spent our time playing, going for walks, played in the park, and going to the Children's Museum. No pix ready yet but see atteached pix from Lee's trip to Woodbury for Easter..

Forgot Chow Mein

He did a great job! So did Jon Bauer as the host. Jon also played a female opera singer with Austin Campbell (age 10) strapped to his back who sang the male part. Hilarious!

No Gong for Their Song

Recognize anything or anyone in these pics?? We had alot of laughs putting together our own rendition of Leader of the Pack for our church's Gong Show. That's me with the short black hair, a couple of familiar Griffin letter jackets and our Tennessee District President on the tricycle as "Leader of the Pack". We had three pastors wives and one other friend from church (we had to have somebody who could choreograph for us). Ed our mechanic from church was Chow Mein the official gonger. President Lampe got the most laughs as he revved his cycle and finished by wiping out or should I say tipping over. Any ideas for next year???
PS - The tornadoes (63 of them) were all north of us. Pray for the 1500 families who lost their homes and the families of the 28 victims.

We just started to blog (thank you, Lisa) and now I am batching it. Lee and Lisa left to spend a few days with Adam in Flower Mound, TX. Spent the day in meetings, composing the newsletter article for April and service planning. We are using a Lenten series on Wednesday evenings based on the Screwtape Letters of CS Lewis and adapted by Rev. Dean Nadasdy of Woodbury Lutheran (where Ben serves as Associate pastor). It has been wonderfully received, especially the chancel dramas which are included.
The image is from Lee and my trip to work in Katrina relief during February. We stayed in tents in below freezing tents which is still much better than many of the residents are experiencing for housing. Keep them in prayer.
For our family and friends up north our great empathy at the extended winter. We've been in the low to mid 50's for highs and near 32 at night. You must be really cold!
This is my first attempt at blogging so will try to be more creative (ala our siblings) in the future. Blessings to all!

our first blog

goodness this is exciting, we have a blog to blog on.... bloggity blog blogger. our kids will love this, because it will talk about our happily ever after. the end

p.s. you will soon see this pic as our photo i.d.