Monday

It rained off and on throughout the day... and of all days for most of us to forget to grab our jackets!  Thankfully we did at least have ponchos, so we survived.

::Bishop Castle::

Ryan & Bethany at the highest point

A pretty incredible view from the top - NOT for those afraid of heights!

What do you do when you forget half of the lunch, which includes the spoons to eat the part we remembered?
That's what God gave you fingers for! :-D

::San Isabelle Lake & Forest::

It was really beautiful - pictures just don't do justice.

We had an opportunity to surround a herd of unsuspecting deer.  Even John got 4 yards from a deer running full speed toward him... and needless to say the deer AND John were rather surprised!

Have you noticed that Josiah tends to be the guinea pig. ;-)  

We hiked a trail that led to an old abandoned mine that some of the guys went to with Grandpa & Grandma Bergen several years ago.  Needless to say it was much further than anticipated, so some stopped to relax at a spot sheltered from the rain while the rest hiked on up to the mine.

It was quite a hike - but they said it was well worth it.

Sunday

Yes, we are in Colorado this week!

Family Worship Time

Or as we like to call it "God's Garden" :-)

::A new adventure - Rock Climbing:: 

Justin did a very good job of making everything safe and explaining all of the rules of climbing... good communication between climber and belayer is critical.

John and Braxton doing a little climbing of their own

Hmm, should I let the monkey loose?

Ryan

Mark

Justin belaying - the climbers' lives are in his hands!

Trevor

Snack time for John and Braxton

Josiah

Matthew

Bethany

Bethany

Yes, "what goes up must come down"! ;-)  The repelling back down was the scariest part.  You have to completely trust the belayer and let gravity work!  Justin said that Josiah and the girls were the best at repelling, but the boys were by far the fastest climbers.

Kara harnessing up

Enjoying the incredible view from the top

Dad

Laura

John & Josiah with their permits

Grandpa & Braxton

View from the parking lot

 After climbing, we went to Justin & Laura's for dinner.

Our dinner
That is one big pizza!!!!
We had worked up quiet the appetites, so a 26" pizza was in order! ;-)

The guys enjoying the pool table in the basement

Guess Where We Are....

 .... for the next week?!

Making final vehicle checks before we headed out this morning

::Traveling::

::Our Home for the Week::

Our back yard!

Some found the little kid books ;-)

Bethany

Happy 20th Birthday!

HayMazing Fun!

So, what do you get when you have...
(1) a lot of people, of all ages
(2) a nice overcast Sunday afternoon/evening
(3) LOTS of big, round hay bales
...all at the Busenitz's farm?

The answer.... Some haymazing fun!!!!

On April 27th, our church families enjoyed an afternoon & evening of fun and fellowship on the Busenitz's farm.  Mrs. Busenitz put together another fun and creative scavenger hunt... we always look forward to those!  With all the iPods, iPhones and laptops amongst us, she decided to add in a more modern twist this time!  And, yes, we did it all just for a piece of chocolate. ;-)  Add into the day some knockout basketball, good food, volleyball, and a devotional given by our host on dying to self and yielding to God, using some ripe wheat from the field to illustrate.  I'll let the picture slideshow tell the story. :-)

I'm sorry about the poor quality.

~Kara

Ashley

Happy 15th Birthday!!

May 25, 1997

3:41 pm

7 Ibs. 8 oz.

20 1/2 in.

Mark

Happy 17th Birthday!


6:21 am

8 Ibs.

20 in.