So...what DO you eat?

Keith frequently says we shouldn't call our weekend adventures "camping" because that conjures up inaccurate ideas of our trips in other folks' minds.

1. We avoid (except in rare instances) designated or maintained campgrounds, choosing instead to practice dispersed camping, where allowed, on land managed by either the National Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management.
2. We don't pitch a tent; we sleep in the back of our SUV.
3. We don't light a fire, so we don't cook. The most we do is boil water over a single burner atop a small propane tank. 

Readying the non-perishables.

That third point garners this post's title: the question - or variations - we hear most often. For a bit of an answer, please come along with us on a brief recap of our most recent four-day excursion to southeast Utah!

Our first evening's campsite was in the Valley of the Gods.

Our dinner: Waldorf Salad with Steel Cut Oats (prepped ahead) and Big House Red wine.

Each glorious morning starts off
with freshly brewed Moons
Kenya AA coffee, of course.

After our usual breakfast and packing up in the morning, we drove through the Valley, enjoying the beautiful rock formations. Here are a couple of views of Keith's favorite.

Then it was up the Moki Dugway and onto Muley Point.

It was a bit of a drive to Moab, which provides an interlude to mention lunches/snacks partaken as necessary any day: apples, cheese, carrots, cookies, nuts (almonds, pistachios, walnuts), dried fruit (cranberries, prunes, raisins), hard-boiled eggs, granola, granola bars, and pretzels.

We stopped to ogle Castle Valley Overlook in the Manti-La Sal National Forest then found our spot for the night.

2nd night's dinner: Mediterranean Barley
Medley (prepped ahead) and Big House Red.

We enjoyed a leisurely morning and breakfast vista,

before hiking the Porcupine Rim Trail above Slickrock.

Then we headed south into Canyon Rims Recreation Area to get a glimpse into Canyonlands National Park and find the perfect place for our last night. These pictures provide better-than-words description of the remainder of our trip:

 
 

At some point, though, we always have to head home.

Thanks for joining us virtually this time around. If you'd ever like to do so in reality, let us know! We'd love to share this in person!

What HAVE We Been Doing for Three Years?

There isn't any excuse for such a long break between posts, so none will be offered. Let's just summarize the past (to our best recollection) few years, and try to move forward (there will also be no promises made).

"Still" Life :

(Note: We originally began this post in January, 2010, with this first paragraph, which we decided to leave in as a pretty fair sum-up.)

We're still living in Albuquerque, NM, currently in our 5th house-sitting stint in three years, and still enjoying all the highly accessible outdoor adventures available to us here. Keith is still working, with increasing success, on generating a steady income stream through a variety of ventures. Sandra is still the Administrative Assistant to the Dean of the University of New Mexico School of Law. (She is, however, now on her 3rd dean.) We're still attending the church that meets in the Lobo Theater, however during the summer of 2009 that church officially became the first extra-Washington-state campus of Mars Hill Church (Mark Driscoll, teaching pastor). We're still working through what that transition means in terms of where and how God wants to use and grow us. We are still exploring how we can be more involved in the greater Albuquerque community through volunteering with Roadrunner Food Bank, Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court's Mediation Program as mediators, and other potential avenues.

Life in Transition:

In mid-January, shortly after composing the paragraph above, we began looking into taking advantage of incentives being offered by the government for "first-time" home-buyers. We actually fit into all of the requisite categories, and with the help of one friend, a mortgage broker, another who is a realtor, and, most of all, God, we found a home we really enjoy. We did not experience much sorrow in leaving our nomadic existence behind, and there is not a day that goes by that we don't look around us in grateful wonder with one of us uttering something to the extent of, "I LIKE this house. Thank You, Lord!"

Towards mid-summer, after much thought, prayer, conversation, frustration and many tears, we recognized God leading us to discontinue our membership of and regular attendance at the church we'd been part of since moving to Albuquerque. We continue to focus on next steps and what "church" will look like in our lives, both for the short- and long-term. Currently, we are involved with a small group of people exploring together how to desegregate "spirituality" as an area of life, and, rather, allow daily living to holistically spring from our central identities as people forgiven by Jesus in dynamic relationship with the God of the universe.

Life Without Children:

Their stories are their own, at this point, but we know some of you would appreciate a synopsis.

Shaina, during the past three years, spent: half a year back in Missouri with house mates, working and hanging out until they all graduated; ten months in Spain as a part-time English Language and Culture teaching assistant; and a lot of interwoven time living and working in the Chicago area through the blessed, gracious and loving hospitality of her grandparents. She is currently enrolled in a graduate program at the University of Denver.

Karl has been living and working in Chicago much of the last few years. He currently lives in the Lincoln Park area with some friends, and enjoys that part of the city very much. He works with a small company that provides fire prevention services for businesses and institutions with commercial kitchens (i.e., very deep cleaning of the hoods over the stoves in said kitchens). He's on the look-out for some additional part-time, or even full-time, opportunities within the golf industry.

Life's Adventures:

A non-exhaustive somewhat sequential "pictorial essay" of people and places.

Happy New Year!

Happy Christmas!

Here we are at the end of another year which seems to have sped by very quickly. Keith and Sandra are still in Albuquerque, NM, and decided not to drive to the Chicago area this winter. This marks the first Christmas in our marriage without either children or immediate family around….Wow! We really are “empty nesters!” While we’ll very much miss interacting with everyone at ‘home,’ God has truly blessed us with great friends and family here to share the joy of this wonder-filled holiday season.

Karl has been back in the Chicago area for almost a year. He currently lives with two friends in the city, not too far west of Wrigleyville, and seems to be settling in and appreciating life on his own. He’s working with a small team of folks who provide industrial/commercial kitchen hood cleaning services. He likes his supervisor and the people on the team, as well as the fact that he’s kept busy in different places all the time. Since they can only clean the hoods when the stoves or ovens are not in use his schedule is quite varied. In between all of this he’s also working towards obtaining a commercial driver’s license.

Shaina graduated in May (see “Cinco de mayo” post), worked in the Chicago area during the summer and then went to Kenya during September and October. She lived with a friend of hers who leads a team of folks providing orphan care, HIV/AIDS education, famine relief, church planting, and leadership training with AfricaHope. She definitely got an immersion experience which she really enjoyed. Now she’s back in Kirksville, MO, living in the house on Elson street with those of her roommates who will be finishing up their schooling during the course of this year. Her goals: 1) finding work to pay bills (which has resulted in two part-time jobs); 2) spending as much time as possible with her great friends for a bit before; 3) figuring out life’s next step.

Some of you may not be aware that Keith no longer has the job which brought us out here. He has been exploring avenues of “self-employment” and continues looking for a steady income stream. Meanwhile God has blessed him with the privilege of offering much time to our church by building great relationships with and caring for many people within its sphere. He enjoys interacting with a wonderful leadership team as our church is in the process of redefinition and redirection towards truly being led by Jesus and His Cause.

Sandra continues to work at the UNM School of Law and enjoying the atmosphere and the people. This year has been a bit hectic and sometimes stressful given that a few occasional events (in all spheres of life) ended up falling within overlapping time frames. God continues to help her stretch her reliance on Him as she gains new skills and insights into what “doing what’s in front of” her really means in daily practical terms.

We pray that God will grant you grace, peace and the realization of His abundant blessings as you enjoy family, friends and celebration at this time of year.

Sabbath

We've been doing a bit of traveling again - sleeping in the SUV and exploring this amazing state. We've found a few accessories that make SUV camping more functional. Keith's almost ready to give up regular housing altogether!

Over Memorial Day weekend we explored southwest NM - visiting the Very Large Array on our way to the Gila National Forest. While finding out exactly what a radio telescope does was interesting, seeing our very first antelope in the wild was a bit more fun. I think he was a little camera shy.....


We camped near a little stream in the Gila National Forest, and continued (after getting some help from some forest rangers) driving through on some beautiful forest roads. Just before hitting the main highway, we stopped and shared a breakfast plate at the Purple Onion in Mogollon. (We also enjoyed the familiar sounds of cicadas singing away!)

Continuing south, we stopped to stretch our legs and explore the beautiful Whitewater Creek area by strolling the Catwalk National Recreation Trail. Heading on we got to Silver City and noticed everyone congregating in a central park...Apparently we'd stumbled upon the city's 12th annual Blues Festival! We wandered around, listened to a couple of pretty decent acts, and chatted with a couple who'd recently moved into town.

Then it was a race against the evening to get to the Gila National Monument before closing time. Our reward: being the last folks admitted to the trail for the day, an amazing early evening climb up the valley, and a very pleasant view into an ancient culture.

We love being able to travel so easily and marvel at God's incredibly diverse creation....and humans'. It's becoming the best way we know to be refreshed and reoriented.

Cinco de mayo

Shaina graduated from Truman State University!!!!!

Given the date (see this blog’s title) and her major (Spanish….and English), she felt it highly appropriate to wear a sombrero. Since we live in the southwest we could happily provide!

All of her roommates’ families attended, and we all had a great time celebrating the graduates. This was the first time since Christmas that we were together as a family. Ab and Rosie (Keith’s folks) were able to come too!

Shaina and Karl are both centered around the Chicago area now, while we’re still in Albuquerque. Growing up feels kind of strange sometimes…..