5.29.2013

ICT: Wichita Trip

Took our spring/summer vacation last week. We flew back to Kansas for a wedding. The last of Nate's high school friends to get married. I flew out early to visit Jenn in Manhattan, then drove through Burlington, helped my grandma out for a day in Leon, and then drove to Wichita Friday. Nate flew out Friday, and then drove to Wichita. Funny thing, we had the same rental car. Chrysler 200. His black, mine white. We returned his in Wichita and used mine the rest of the trip. We had a great time. Here are some photos from the week.

Kansas! Scientifically flatter than a pancake.
Amos! The smartest 20-month-old I've ever met! So cute.
Tofer Jones. Part Irish wolfhound. Sometimes described as "a big slug."
We walked around the riverside. Here is Andy touching a butt at the Wichita Art Museum.
A troll at the river

Ryan helping Nate with his tie. Nate read Scripture at Ryan & Alicia's wedding
Ryan and Alicia getting ready to cut the cake that Ashley made.
Ryan and Nate
The unofficial reunion of Maize High Class of 2003

Nate and me with the Boyles at KC's "Celebration at the Station" … KC symphony and fireworks

I think Otis missed us. He seemed glad to have us home.
I cleaned up the grill, so Nate grilled on Memorial Day.

5.21.2013

the silent storm inside my arms.

the silent storm inside my arms

The lightning struck where thunder failed to give warning:
a harsh blow in springtime afternoons.
We are all left
with smoking trees
and towers
and TV antennas.

Where tall cliffs once stood straight and strong,
the rocks now rest in a crumbling pile.

The clouds stooped low and blinded out the sun,
so I embraced the tempest as it mutely raged.

Steaming geysers release hot streams over rolling hills;
cold rain falls on even the most beautiful of roses.
The distant quake erupts without a sound,
a shudder detectable only when you hold your breath
and feel the shifting in the gentle breeze.

The breaking heart is still the beating heart.
We’ll pray on these tears for years,
and I’ll hold tight
to the silent storm inside my arms.


Alyssa Reeves Jones
Fall 2008, Kansas State University
ENGL463–Intro. to Poetry Writing 

5.16.2013

first half of may.

How is May flying by so quickly? Here is what's been going on this month.

First, Nate is finishing up his semester. Like probably this week he will turn in his last assignments. Then he only has two semesters left! Well, we have to confirm that with an advisor but that is what it looks like. So if we're correct on what classes he still needs, he will be able to take the summer off from schoolwork! That makes for a happy student and a happy wife.

Rev. Robert Warner (father-in-law to my 2nd cousin, 3x removed)
I'm still quasi-obsessed with working on our family tree. Genealogy is just so fascinating to me, and between ancestry.com and the general Internet, there's a gold mine of information on relatives who lived a hundred years ago. One relative (whose daughter married into the Reeves family) is Rev. Robert Warner (1864-1937). We have a lot of pastors in the tree, on the Reeves side and Jones/Link side.

Anyway, I was Googling him and found that there was a book about him published in the 1930s. It's actually his testimony, recorded by his wife and two daughters. There are a couple of copies in two libraries in Washington state, and then I found one available at abebooks.com for $8. So I bought it, and it immediately said it was no longer available at abebooks, so I must have bought their only copy. It's a first edition. The cover is purple velvet (some sun fading) and the title is gold stamped letters. It's only 40 pages long, and it is written in first person (from Robert Warner) about his ministry in the Methodist Episcopal Church in the Northwest—Washington and Idaho and such. He preached on circuits, traveling around to various cities for revivals.

Miles is growing up.
Surprisingly no photos of Otis in this post, but I assure you he is still as cute as usual. Instead, Miles! Miles is getting all grown up! Here's a photo of him shortly after I adopted him in January 2010, and then just recently. He has such a different personality than Otis, so he comes across as a grumpy old man sometimes. But he's not against sitting on my lap or purring when I brush him. He's always sweet to me. :)

Indoor cat getting some outside time
It's been kind of hot here. I mean "hot" relatively. It's been in the mid-80s which is hot enough to heat up the car in the parking lot and make me sweat. Nate and I took Miles and Otis into the backyard for some outside time. Miles enjoyed it, and he managed to get seeds/pollen all over his head. Poor Nate came inside with watering eyes and sneezing, and his legs were covered in chigger bites.

Miles curled up on Hannah's bed
This week our summer lodger, Hannah, moved in. Hannah's from Texas and is working at the Y this summer. Her boyfriend, Josh, is in the college community group we lead at Immanuel and it's fun having them around. (Josh goes to Belmont.) They are 19 and 20, which makes Nate and I feel really old! :)

Bacon-Wrapped Green Beans
I've been trying to keep up with cooking. Last night I made meatloaf and bacon-wrapped green beans. Turkey bacon. Then I mixed up soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic salt, and a little butter and glazed the beans before baking them. Yum!

I finished reading Jim Gaffigan's book, Dad Is Fat, which is hilarious. We also got the audiobook for free with a free trial at audible.com. I read the book on Kindle. It's a fast read. It's about his family who lives in a two-bedroom apartment in New York. Five kids. He says that thanks to his [very fertile] wife, they have an open-door policy—which basically means that at any time in the night, any of their children is welcome to come into their room and pee in their bed. haha This book is probably funnier for parents but we were cracking up too.

Just a few more days until I fly back to Kansas to spend some time in Manhattan with Jenn and then swing through Burlington and then to Wichita to meet up with Nate for a wedding. This trip will be the first time I've rented a car! I'm finally old enough! I'll fly out Tuesday night, and Nate will fly out Friday afternoon. The wedding is Saturday, and we have Monday off for Memorial Day so we'll fly back Monday morning. Can't wait.

5.01.2013

despicablimp.

This happened in Nashville today … The Despicablimp!

The Despicablimp over Union Station in Nashville (Photo: AdamDYork)
The Descipablimp over the Tennessee State Capitol (Photo: pgalbreath)
Here's a close-up from @despicablimp

How fun is that? Despicable Me 2 hits theaters July 3.

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