THE HOLY LAND

Three years ago Mark and I took a wonderful trip to Israel. It had such a profound
impact on each of us that we vowed that we would somehow return with our children.
Well, we were able to return to Israel, and Alex and Dan and Sara were able to join
us on a wonderful adventure. Maybe sometime in the future we can again return
with Sarah and Jeremy and Nate and Kellie. Until then, here are just a few of our
many pictures we took of this trip of a lifetime. Seeing Tel Aviv, Cesarea, Tiberius
and the Sea of Galilee, the site of Armageddon and the Jezreal Valley, Masada and
the Dead Sea, Qumran, site of where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, then onto
Jerusalem and its many treasures. Bethlehem, Nazareth, Capernaum and Cana, the Jordan River and
the Mt. of Olives and Kiddron Valley, and the Wailing Wall... ... it is a life changing
experience to see these sites.

The Wild and Crazy World of All Terrain Vehicles

Recently Mark decided to make our wonderful retired life even more exciting by getting a little two seater ATV for hitting the dusty trails of southern Utah and northern Arizona. Here are a few pictures of our recent trip with our good friends Russ and Janean Sonntag and Marty and Melanie Tidwell. We did get lost a few times but luckily no accidents occurred. I have to

admit it is pretty fun to go out on the desert exploring sand dunes, slot canyons and beautiful scenery. Pack a lunch for the day, and we're set to go!

Christmas in Heber Valley 2009

We were fortunate enough to have all of our children home with us this year for Christmas.
A friend came over to our house and took a few pictures of everyone.
Who knows when we'll all be together again for the holidays. We all had a great week
together, eating good food and playing games and just hanging out....... and it was even a White Christmas!

Autumn in Southern Utah

We spent a week at our house in St. George enjoying the beautiful weather.
We rode our bikes in Zion National Park one day, another day riding down the
very nice bike trails along the Virgin River and Snow Canyon and we visited with
friends and went to see Footloose at the Tuacahn Ampitheater.
A nice way to enjoy Fall!

A Few Images of Japan

Now that we are home from Japan and Alex is back, I
wanted to share a few favorite photos of our trip in that
beautiful land. It was wonderful to spend time with our
son and see the amazing areas he lived in, like Osaka,
Nara, Kobe and Kyoto, as well as Wakayama. After spending 5 days
in the Kobe Mission area, we took the train back to Tokyo and spent
4 more days there before heading back home to the U.S. Alex was a great
tour guide for us and was very patient with our little
group.

WELCOME HOME ALEX!!

He's finally home after almost 25 months away on his mission to
Japan. We are all so happy to have him back with us.
More photos of our trip to Japan to follow soon...