Back to Geneva!

We're back!  We arrived in Switzerland at the end of August, just in time to recover from some wicked jet lag and get ready for school and more visitors.  Grandma Carol, Aunt Karen, Carla and her friend, Sandy all came for a "tour d'europe" as they split their time between Geneva with us and Germany with Jay, Joyce, and Jake.  Jack was their personal tour guide through Old Towne and he and Grandma Carol were able to debate The Reformation and its effects on the universal church.  Unfortunately, I had to miss that delightful event as I had to get Kate, Josh, and Kami off to their first day of school (Jack started a day later).  We also spent a day making a beautiful trip up to Champossen where Aunt Karen has a time share and skis with her family in the winter.  They were great guests to have because they were constantly cleaning my house, doing laundry, making dinner and helping kids with homework.  I told them any of them could come and stay as long as they wanted-I need all the help I can get!

Aunt Karen taught the kids to play "competitive hopscotch"

The cafe where I was treated to lunch in France

Time Flies When You Are Having Fun

This past August we decided to take a break from Europe and go home for about four weeks.  We had a great time at the lakehouse in Georgia visiting with all of our friends there.  Then we headed up to Virginia where we stayed at a beach house and were able to spend great time with our family in Virginia Beach.
Yet the thing that we did that was the most precious was celebrate Jackson's 13th birthday.  Growing up we all heard the proclamation "Time Flies!,"  but I had no ability to grasped this concept until Jack was born.  Wasn't it just last year that I handed that first positive pregnancy test to Geof?  Last month that we brought him home from the hospital?  How is it possible that he blew out 13 candles on August 5th? 
The only reason I can believe any of this insanity is because I see what an amazing young man my teenager is becoming and I know that did not happen overnight!  It has been thousands of blessed days full of loving and praying for this little boy.  The privledge of being his parents has been filled with moments of tears, hours of laughter, and years of joy.  He is confident, compassionate, and independent; yet still seeking, striving and sometimes struggling.  I am so grateful for the journey the Lord is taking him on and only because of this certainity can I eagerly look forward to the years to come, no matter how fast they go.
Happy Birthday Jackson!  You are amazing and we love you!

Jackson's signature pose in Champossen, Switzerland

Crazy About Our Cousins!

We just spent a fantastic week with Hailey and Jake in Geneva.  We got to show them around all of our favorite Swiss and French spots-despite the rain that we dodged all week.  I can't believe Hailey is on her way to Longwood in a few weeks...where is that little girl who woke us up one Thanksgiving morning signing songs from "The Little Mermaid?"  And Jake!  Let's just say the girls at Ansbach High School are in for quite a treat.  They have grown up to be amazing young people and I am so grateful for anytime we get to spend with them.  Thanks you two for putting up with all my craziness and being such wonderful examples for my children.  We all adore you.

It is such a treat to be their aunt, and so much less stressful than being their mom!  Aunt Mary stays up till midnight playing spades, blocks passes in backyard football (and has the bruises to prove it), and says "sure" when her almost-legal neice and nephew ask for Kahlua in their coffee (it was just a splash).  Mom never does that!  Actually, Mom is hardly any fun at all.  I think I'm inviting Aunt Mary to come hang out for a while and give Mom a break; atleast until school starts!:)

Our next stop...USA!!  We leave on Tuesday and land later that day in Atlanta.  We plan to be at Chick-fil-a in Oakwood around 6pm.  We will spend a couple of weeks there and then head up to Virginia Beach to visit our families.  Looking forward to seeing all of you!

Big kids like ice cream too!

Blackberries and Apples

Blackberry, Apple and Cream Cheese Tart
1 cup Blackberries and 1/2 c. sugar, mixed together
2 cubed apples mixed with 1 Tbsp sugar and juice from 1/2 of a lemon
Mix together:
1 package cream cheese
1/4 c. sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg white
1 tsp vanilla
On tart crust layer apple mixture, sprinkle with nutmeg, cream cheese mixture, and then top with blackberry mixture.
Bake at 350 for 35 minutes or until golden brown.

Bon Appetit!

I don't know where I'm a gonna go when the volcano blows!

This is me doing a reenactment of the people who lived in Pompeii as they would have run when Mt Vesuvius exploded in 79 AD. That is the volcano in the background.

A long time ago Pompeii was a Roman city.  It was full of houses, roads, a forum, a mini-colosseum, a theatre, and hotels.  When the volcano exploded it first covered the city with ash.  This is what killed most of the people because they couldn't breathe.  Then the lava came and covered up the ash and that is why the city is so well preserved.  We even saw some bodies that were covered in ash. I liked going into all the houses because you could really see what it was like to live there 2000 years ago.  I really liked going there, especially because we got to see it with our friends, the Turners.

In the Forum

Look!  It's contagious...

Aww, so cute..

...or not.

It's not every day you get to hang out on Ancient Roman Ruins.

Turner Time!

In Annecy, France

          Many of you may know that the Turners, our good friends, came to visit us. For the start of our adventure with them we went to a ropes course in Rolle, Switzerland.  We had a fun time swinging and climbing through the trees. Then, we went on a day trip to Annecy, France.  That was a great town and it just lost the bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics. We are mad because we thought it would be a great host city.  We also went to Naples, Italy.  We all had a blast going to Capri Island.  The most fun I had was touring the island on a boat with Bailey and Dr. Turner.  The tour included going into a cavern called the Blue Grotto.  If you ever get a chance to do that it is really cool.  You go in a cave and the water is a bright blue and glows.  Overall we had a very fun time with the Turners.

At the hotel in Sorrento, near Naples, Italy

View from the pool at the hotel

View of Mt Vesuvius from the hotel

Pressing On....

Well, our good friends, the Turners, just left and again-we are a little sad.  We had a great time (pictures soon to come) and loved seeing Naples, Italy with them.  So now, it is just us for a while, until we head back to the states on July 30th.  But there is one thought that is keeping us hanging on; one place we dream of going as soon as our feet hit the good old USA...follow the link below as Mr. Tim Hawkins expresses our feelings exactly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsJHqstPuNo


PS.  there is a reason we are coming home on Saturday and not Sunday.

Another PS.  I know that you are unable to comment on the blog; what I do not know is why...sorry :(