The new year... rest, races, and reflections.

Starting off the year at the Oregon Coast is the way to do it... and I have been doing this for the last seven years! My office has our annual Renewal Retreat out at Cannon Beach, Oregon. It's a beautiful way to start the new year off refocused on God... time with Joel... and with 100 amazing pastors and their spouses from our district. I love hearing their stories... seeing them worship... learning from them and the speaker. It was good for the soul.

We also got a visitor at the end of January... Mr. Bob Banker... Zach's dad. Joel had to run to Medford while Bob was here... so, Kaden and I tagged along on one of their adventures: the horse race! Kaden loved the "Lightning McQueen"... or the Red ones. :) hahah!!! My kid associates everything to CARS the movie. It was a fun morning spent watching horses race, kaden cheer, Zach and his dad figure out which to bet on, and hanging with Mei Mei experiencing at all the excitement in the air.

This leads us to sadly announcing (which everyone already knows)... Uncle Zach and Mei Mei (Amanda) are packing up their basement and heading out to China to teach English for at least a year. The little things are treasured these last two months... nights spent at the black hub (our dinning room table)... our silly adventures... the food that flows out of our kitchen...impromptu soccer games, races and dances that happen in the living room. So many laughs, tears, discussions, hopes, dreams, challenges, laughs, did I say laughs?

Kaden not only will miss them greatly, but Joel and I will have a huge hole in our hearts as well. I think I shall stop writing now... this has been a hard day.