What a Difference a Year Can Make

Today marks the 1 yr. anniversary of our "landing" here in Portland!  It certainly doesn't seem possible.  When we pulled in, it was 95 degrees and sunny, and the temperature only continued to rise as the afternoon hours progressed.  By stark contrast, we woke today to about 55 degrees and a light mist that lasted most of the morning.  As the last 2 days have proven, by 1pm the sun will burn through the clouds and we're expecting to hit 82 today!

Oh the wonder of how I find myself discussing the weather SO much....at times I feel like I have bragging rights because it's so nice, then other days, I wonder if it's really July when the average temperature has been about 70!  It does make for pleasant bike riding, however.

The past year has been a learning experience for sure and we've also been able to enjoy much!  The Lord has blessed us with employment, a roof over our heads, food on the table, a great church and some wonderful friends and community.  We know we're blessed.

Aside from our week long trip to Ohio in May, we've been fairly quiet.  We are trying to experience more of the offerings of the city (preferably the free ones!) and are getting more time on our bikes.  The city puts an event together called Sunday Parkways, where they close off streets in a certain area of town (near a city park), make a bike route, set up vendors of all kinds, provide music, etc, and allow riders of all kinds to enjoy several hours biking without traffic.  They had 5 areas of the city planned for this year and we just went to our first one on Sunday morning.  We had a great time and hope to make the last one of the summer in a few weeks.

We have been sponsored by one of Scott's professors to attend a 3 day conference at Cannon Beach (at the coast) in August to hear Randy Alcorn.  Randy wrote a book called Heaven, which was very instrumental to both of us after each experiencing the loss of a parent, and also what prompted us to look further into Multnomah Biblical Seminary.  We are hoping to meet Randy and share our story with him.  We're also REALLY looking forward to some time at the beach!!

School begins in late August.  Until then, we continue to enjoy this AMAZING landscape and all that goes with it!  Hope you're all enjoying your summer!