We have had some amazing time with our grandchildren. Each time we were out doing something one of them would ask, “Is this going to be in the blog, Jelly?” Or,”Will I be in the blog this week, Jelly?”

So, I’m dedicating this blog to the grandkids and all the memories made.

Let’s begin with #1 Grandchild, Noah. Papa calls him Sir Noah. Sir Noah was the highlight of our arrival. His high school graduation started this piece of our journey. We saw him for a couple early breakfasts and all our family outings. Noah is a fan of Shakespeare and Boise has Shakespeare in the Park during the summer months. Noah managed to dodge the camera better than any of them? I pray the rest of them do not take his lead on this.

One more proud Grandma moment regarding Noah, we were there to see him go off to his first 40 hour per week job! Praise the Lord, one more tax payer and social security provider! Remember, we are retired now and need those funds paying in. So, thank you, Sir Noah, beginning to help the cause, your grandparents retirement.

After one last breakfast by Papa, off to work you go, hi ho, hi ho!

Lilly girl is a busy one. She popped in and out most everyday and she loved chauffeuring me to my errands. Sometimes we just had to drive around and listen to my cassettes she is babysitting while we are on this trip. Lilly will be eligible to get her drivers license on August 13th. She has set that as her date and not a second later, and believe me, when she has her mind set on something, it happens. Good Luck, Lilly!

We even managed to make a quilt during this time in Boise. Lilly picked out the fabric and designed it. She even cut and sewed some. She has promised to make me a quilt one day. Papa is predicting at the age of 35, she will make me a quilt. A tradition with all my quilts is the first picture is with Papa under the quilt.

Another tradition is a late late night run to Denny’s for pancakes with Lilly. Not sure how this began or if this is good grandparenting, but we do it and love making the memories. This time she drove!

Number 3 is Daniel. We had the privilege of spending quite a bit of time with Daniel. He began his cross country career in June with practice every morning at 9:00. The young man never missed. His dedication is unbelievable. This grandma couldn’t be more proud. His first time trial, I wish I thought to take pictures, but I had my timer going instead. 5:46 mile, 11:40 two miler. I think that is really good six weeks into training. His coach has a camp for the top 15-20 team members each summer at his place on Cascade Lake. Daniel was invited to be a part. Daniel hung out with us and hiked in the afternoons -yes, after morning training. Papa calls him Coach Daniel.

Daniel was one hungry guy each morning after practice. Papa loved being the short-order cook each morning as they trickled in. We did try to close up breakfast by noon each day so we could do other things.

Lukey, called by Grandma Jelly. Master Luke is his official Papa name. He is our all around dude. And there doesn’t appear to be a sport that he doesn’t have a natural talent for, however snowboarding is by far his favorite. He loves the outdoors, he loves games and Sponge Bob, he loves pancakes, bacon, and Cheez-its. And he loves soft blankets to lay under while watching sponge-bob and eating Cheez-its, just like his sister’s newly made quilt. This guy is just fun, easy to be around, and up for most adventures just like his Papa. He and Papa flew to Johnson Creek and camped out on the grass strip in freezing weather on the bare ground in shorts and a tank top, surviving only on tree bark, as their story goes. Which I believe was a little embellished.

Rosie posie puddin pie, never kisses the boys to make them cry is our youngest. Papa calls her Princess Rosie. I really like to use her real name Rosalie, however, she does not want to be called that. Rosie is our self-taught artist and is becoming better and better as time passes. Give her a canvas, artist pad with paints and pencils, or sand on a beach with sticks, and she feels like she is in heaven (or sometimes just (bored). Rosie does not like hiking, however she does like Papa’s pancakes, baking and fruit.

I could share so much more. Thank you for letting us brag a bit. Our time with our grandchildren is precious. Making memories with them is the best of the best. I hope each of you with grandchildren have time to make memories as well.

Blessings this week, Jay and Kelly.

We’re back writing! The past couple weeks have been quite busy. My computer time these past two weeks have been planning the next five months of our travels. I think you all will enjoy what lies ahead. As we have said before, thank you for coming along on this journey with us. I think of you often and we are so blessed to have each of you in some way a part of our lives.

Celebrating our blessings in life and those around us are very important. Haha, saying that, reminds me of our precious Curacaoan’s. They loved to use the phrase “….is very important.”

These past couple weeks we have done just that…celebrated those around us. We have celebrated birthdays and guests visiting.

Since the last blog, our Lilly girl turned 15! Oh my, I remember where I was and who I was with, Leslie Stone, when the call came saying this precious baby girl had arrived into this world. What a joy she is with her fun-loving personality.

We celebrated Papa Jay’s birthday as well. A group of us participated in an escape room. Unbeknownst to us there were records to hold! We managed to escape in the rankings of eighth place since this escape room opened three years ago. Had we known, I think we could have done even better.

After the escape room we had a poke’ dinner and cake, which was really key-lime pie, to celebrate 68 years of Jay Harris.

We had the honor of our dear friends, Tommy and Judy, with us for a few days. I use the term friends, however they are family to me. God gave them to me 30 years ago. And I am blessed to call them a part of my God-Family. We ate well, hiked many miles, and discovered some beautiful places in Idaho.

This is Shoshone Falls in Twin Falls, Idaho. This is also known as the Niagara of the West. Evel Knievel attempted a jump over a part of the Snake River near the falls.

Jay flew us to McCall, Idaho to walk around and have lunch one day. Another beautiful area of Idaho.

Our dear friend, Glenda Harr’s daughter, is a singer/songwriter. During the summer, Shannon and her husband, Jamie, tour the United States performing in homes. They call them “house concerts”. This year she performed in a home just ten minutes from us. So, I asked for an invitation to at least give her a big hug. It had been so long since we have seen Shannon. If you haven’t ever heard her beautiful voice, look her up on YouTube, Shannon Curtis. You will want to host a concert in your own home one day.

By the way, one of her wonderful gifts is she can write a special song for you and the love of your life if you want.

Her tour this year is called “Revolutionary Acts of Optimism”. She said, “Some revolutions are small and personal. Some are big and structural. They all begin with eyes set on the horizon toward what is possible. What if….there is more.”

When I think of a revolution in optimism I think of Psalms 118:24, This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Wow!

What if….that verse was the first sentence out of everyone’s mouth everyday. Now that would be a revolution of optimism, I think.

After writing this last night, I woke up this morning saying that particular verse first. It was amazing how big my smile became with every word. Try it!

As we continue to work on our travel plans we use different websites such as TripAdvisor or Yelp to try and find places without a “psycho condo-owner”. As we read reviews I began to wonder… The statistics of negative reviews verses positive. Are you ready? Statistics show it takes 40 positive reviews to cancel out one negative review. Why do we focus on the negative?

Daniel, our grandson, and I had a conversation one morning this week regarding all the planets and all the different galaxies, why is earth, one of the smaller planets, so special to have living creatures? Are we really the only ones?

I love these kinds of questions and I love this quest of optimism and what if’s. Most of you know, I am a wonderer. I love the “what if” or “I wonder” questions.

We summarized our conversation talking about how special each of us are to God. He placed us on this special planet. God said in Isaiah43:4, “Because you are so precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you…”.

There it is, He said it all in one sentence. He proved it all one day on the cross for us.

So, if today is the day the Lord, who thinks you are the most precious thing on Earth and loves you with an everlasting love, has made; let’s go celebrate all the wonderful wonders He has given us. Forgive, respect and honor those around you today.

Thank you, Shannon, for that inspiring phrase, “Revolutionary Act of Optimism”. Let’s go do it.

Find the bounty in continued wondering and blessing.

Kelly

That’s a strange title, right? Our time in Boise has a little routine to it which looks like this: Hiking most days, Papa cooking late breakfasts, and Grandma Jelly chauffeuring to different places.

This past week we had a summer solstice lunch party with all the grandkids along with neighbor kids serving hot (get it, summer-hot) wings, and homemade garlic cheddar biscuits. Luke’s menu selection.

We also celebrated Father’s Day a week late by driving to, then hiking into Jump Creek Falls Canyon.

To celebrate Rosalie getting her braces off and consoling her with the news of a retainer for the next two years, we spent a day at Wahooz’s, which is an indoor/outdoor entertainment center. It has loud (sounding like a grandparent) games, rides, and miniature golf. Papa and I played four rounds to stay away from the noisy indoor activities.

Even with all the celebrating we have managed to walk some miles for the next piece of our adventure which is coming very quickly.

You think with all this celebrating, we would have named this blog something different. Stay with me.

We have managed to walk with each grandchild. Some more than others, however we hope to have more miles with each of them this next month. As I mentioned in one of the previous blogs, we have had some really good conversations. They ask questions and I love the dialog with each one during these times.

On one particular hike the conversation became more of a debate about the mouse’s feelings in the poem, “To a Mouse” by Robert Burns. May I say, this particular grandchild needs to take debate in school when that subject becomes available.

The poem is about a farmer that plows over a mouse’s home it had built in order to take shelter from the winter soon coming. The farmer is apologizing to this tiny creature assuring him he meant no harm. The debate was about the mouse’s feelings of having to rebuild it’s home. One side of the debate was this mouse just continued on with its life without regret and began building a new home without feeling the sadness of its loss. The other debator argued this mouse probably felt sadness and depression just liked we do as people when we suffer a great loss. And just like most of us who have suffered great loss, we feel the sadness and depression, however we have to continue with life. What do you think? Do you think God created our little creatures with the emotional feelings like humans? Which side of this debate would you be on?

Another subject Papa likes to have is government. There have been many wonderful discussions on this one, however one reminded me how we need to be to be praying for our leaders daily.

The discussion was, if you were president today, what would you do regarding the Iran situation? This child said, “we should do as much as we can before going to war”. The child continued, “can we take things away from them that will make them not do the things they are doing?” When Papa explained the history of Iran, clear back to the early 70’s until today’s situation, the conclusion of this child was, “Wow, being a president is hard!!! This is only one situation they have to deal with each day.”

As this week has progressed presidential debates have begun. It is a huge reminder how important it is for all of us to pray daily for our leaders, from local all the way up to our nation, whether we like them or not.

1 Timothy 2:1-2 says, “I urge, then, first of all, that petition, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people – for kings and ALL those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” 1 Peter 2:17 says, “Treat everyone you meet with respect, Love your spiritual family, Revere God, Respect your government.”

To me these verses as well as so many others are saying, whether we voted for one of our officials or not, they deserve our prayers and respect.

Is that what we are doing? Respect is not always something I’m hearing these days and it saddens me what we are immulating and teaching our children and grandchildren regarding authority. Believe me our younger generation is watching, listening, and repeating the words, attitudes, and actions from those they honor and respect, such as parents, grandparents, teachers, coaches, professors, and church leaders.

Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “I ask that our people devote themselves in a continuance of prayer. As we rise to each new day, and again when each day is spent, let words of prayer be on our lips.”

Ronald Reagan said in a January, 1983 speech, “From General Washington’s struggle at Valley Forge to the present, this nation has fervently sought and received divine guidance as it pursued the course of history. This occasion provides our nation with an opportunity to further recognize the source of our blessings, and to seek His help for the challenges we face today and in the future.”

President Trump said,”We are united in prayer, each according to our own faith and tradition, and we believe that in America, people of all faiths, creeds, and religions must be free to exercise their natural right to worship according to their consciences. We are also reminded and reaffirm that all human beings have those rights, but to practice their faith in their homes, schools, charities, and businesses – in private and in the public square-free from government coercion, discrimination, or persecution.”

This is about as political as you will ever hear me get in a public setting.

Whether we are republican, democrat, or any other political affiliation, may we be as kind to one another as the farmer who accidentally plowed up the mouse’s house was to the mouse, may we be thoughtful with our words and actions. May we be faithful, informed and thoughtful when talking to others about our politics, and as we ask God’s wisdom and righteousness to be evident in our local, state, and national government policies and leaders. Just like this week in all our celebrations, may we all celebrate, not only on July 4th, but each day our rights and freedoms our forefathers fought so hard for. May we be thankful for those who are up for the challenges they face running for all the offices available, and not forget our freedom to vote. May we remember the words of our youth, Wow, being president must be really hard.

Happy 4th and Blessings, Kelly

Spontaneous – Having an open, natural, uninhibited manner. Relax, free, and easy.

Opportunity – A set of circumstances that make it possible to do something. An example used in the dictionary was, “A chance for employment or promotion such as an opportunity in our New York headquarters.” This is an interesting dictionary comment since I’m sitting in a Manhattan park named Bryant Park watching jugglers and a piano player. Perhaps I should give the definition of coincidence as well.

Coincidence – A remarkable concurrence of events or circumstances without apparant casual connection. Providence, serendipity, destiny.

How did this particular Spontaneous Opportunity occur? As you know from last week’s post, Jay and I were in Sacramento for the wedding. We had the pleasure of staying with this wonderful friend (and one of my heaven triplets), Jeanne. She and her sister are identical twins. Years ago they adopted me as their triplet. Back to the story……

Weather has a way of keeping you flexible, don’t you think? After the wedding, Jay was flying us down to San Diego to drop some items off from our major house cleaning we did prior to our travels.

Who has heard of the June gloom of Southern California? If you haven’t, here you go. June is a month when the fog rolls into the coast and bays and doesn’t want to leave for the majority of the day. One side of the 5 freeway can be sunny. Turn your head the opposite direction and there will be a buildup of fog and clouds in which we need to fly IFR below minimums. We don’t like to do that. So, Pilot Jay grounded us. I rented a car and off I went, first spontaneous opportunity – a road trip!!!

No matter where I am, there is training for the Camino. Becky becomes my new training partner for a few days. Hiking is not her favorite thing to do, however she will when she is with me….until we ran into……

Something like THAT!!!!! Becky’s description was something to the effect, ” it was so big, Uncle Jay, my whole body could fit into it’s mouth.” You guys would have been so proud of how calm I was. Annie and Beka, do you remember how calm I was when we went “Salsa Dancing” at Mambo beach and the little man decided to twirk? That’s the same reaction I had regarding the snake for Becky. Apparantly, “OH MY” and/or “OH NO” is the Aunt Kelly comment when protecting neices from possible harm.

Meanwhile, Spontaneous Opportunity is occurring for Pilot Jay. He decides to take the plane to Boise. The grandkids are excited about this. And, Pilot Papa has new passengers to help fly the plane. I see future pilots.

Becky and I are having a wonderful time getting caught up when a Spontaneous Opportunity comes along and we are booking flights to New York City. I’m available for travel, she’s available, it’s definitely the thing to do – Spontaneous Opportunity.

We love meeting up in New York City once a year, if possible. We love the musicals, shopping, and fine dining. We are also planners. Jay laughs at us when we are planning our trips each year. Becky and I will have our itinerary down and really never veer from it. That’s just one of the fun pieces of the trip for us, the planning. In our minds we are already on vacation when we are picking out our outfits together via facetime. So, for us to book a flight on a Tuesday and in New York City on Saturday without any reservations or tickets……Spontaneous Opportunity had to be the theme.

As soon as we landed at 4:00, Becky is getting us a ride to the hotel, I’m on ticketsnow to find tickets, and done, check that off. “Oh my, Aunt Kelly, that was way too easy,” until……we are leaving the hotel room at 6:00 to go to the theatre and receive a notice saying we did not get the tickets. I should add a saddy face right here, except we’re in New York City!!

Plan B – we walk to the theatre, get in this line they have for last minute empty seats. Thinking this can’t be a real thing, I’m on Stubhub. Just as the last of the 1,400 ticket holders enter the building, I receive a text saying, you have received your tickets!!!! It was the same seats I thought we had just before leaving the hotel through a different site. Oh, and did I mention, less expensive!!!! Jay certainly liked hearing that piece. The musical? See the picture below.

The elusive, for us, Hamilton! On Broadway! I’d say Spontaneous Opportunity pays off five minutes before curtain time.

Becky and I have had a few bucket list items such as seeing Hamilton on our budget, that if we could do, our New York travels would be complete. Another one has been reservations to an exclusive restaurant called Eleven Madison. Just for the heck of it, since we’ve never been able to get in, I placed our name on the wait list. Sunday, still amazed at seeing Hamilton, walking out the hotel door when my phone rings. Mrs Harris, this is Eleven Madison and a table is now available for 7:00 tonight. Would you still be interested in dining with us tonight?

Yes! Of course – Spontaneous Opportunity. “Mrs Harris, Anna Marie will be at the door to greet you. Please let us know if there is any thing we can do to make your time with us enjoyable.”. Not only did Anna Marie greet us, Brian, Chris, Blake, and several others tended to us for a wonderful experience.

Our last New York City bucket list item is about a Stella McCartney purse. Every trip requires a visit to my dream purse that I just can’t fork over the $$. So, I drop by to hold it, place it on my shoulder, admire it in the mirror. And, always comment how good it looks on me. Stella McCartney designs are, I think, timeless – at least for the five years I’ve been visiting it. Spontaneous Opportunity – and never before 40% off. Yes, that’s what is on my arm in the first picture.

New York is never without time at Tiffany’s. However, we betrayed our beloved Tiffany’s with Stella. Can’t pass up a great sale. However, we did visit our beloved to see the new designs on the third floor and….5th Avenue Tiffany is moving for a year’s remodel. See you, Tiffany’s, in 2021, hopefully.

Whoever had the forethought of designing Central Park was a genius in my eyes. Just when the hustle and bustle of people and concrete begin to get to you, just walk into this beautiful park that goes forever. So many winding trails, bridges, and ponds.

One more play to complete this Spontaneous Opportunity. Jersey Boys is always a great time of entertainment. First time Becky has seen it.

In order to maintain our weekly budget, Jay is back in Boise. Yes, that is beans, sardines and a $.49 glass of wine from a box. He’s so good to me.

I feel like the Green Acres song has its place right now: Me – “New York is where I’d rather be. I get allergic smelling hay, I just adore a penthouse view. Darlin I love you but give me Park Avenue.” Jay – “Green Acres is the place to be, Farm living is the life for me, Land spreadout so far and wide, keep Manhattan, give me that countryside.”

Opportunities planned or spontaneous, I am reminded of our sweet Curacaoan’s we met who say they are so blessed. Yes, we are! I might have fun with the Green Acres song, however the song I really think of is, “God, You’re so Good”.

“I am blessed, I am called, I am healed, I am whole, I am saved in Jesus’ name. God you are so good, you are so good to me.”

May you enjoy the opportunities that come your way. Blessings, Kelly

Johnny Cash sang, “You can’t see it with your eyes, hold it in your hand. But like the wind, it covers our land. Strong enough to move the heart of any man, This thing called love.”

This past week I had one of the utmost highest privileges a person can bestow on another. I was asked to officiate the marriage of two very special people in my life. The bride and her children have been a part of our lives since Jay and I have been together. Our relationship goes back to when we lived in Oklahoma City. We have been blessed to watch the children grow into the amazing young adults they are today, and we cherish each memory we have made throughout these years. We have loved the bride groom since the first time we met him nine years ago. All are special threads woven into our lives tapestry.

As emotions welled up standing up front guiding this precious couple into marriage – the most honorable estate created and instituted by God, I’m reflective of my own thoughts of love. Of course we know God created love, we didn’t. God is Love. We learn how to love by being loved by our family and friends. When you read that, what formulates in your heart and mind? Do we really love unconditionally and freely just as God loves us?

I shared with this couple love and humility unite, pride divides. Love and humility are grounded and understand who they are. They are never overblown or underjudged. Humility is related to the Greek word “Humus” (Not the dip made with chickpeas). It is used to enrich soil in gardens. That’s what humility does for marriages or any relationship we might have. In a garden, humus feeds the soil, protects the good characteristics of the soil. It naturally extracts the negative aspects of the soil, and it retains water in order to withstand droughts. In relationships, humility allows people to co-exist well. It brings forth the good in others. It naturally draws out and destroys the bad. And it can retain enough supply to get through those dry times we all get to experience.

Other than our first couple years of marriage, Jay and I have never spent more than six or seven weeks together. Most of you know I traveled back and forth to Oklahoma City for work, spending at least one week at a time there. Then you add any travels Jay would have for work – you got it, many days apart. Several of you following this blog asked prior to our year long adventure, “how in the world are you guys going to be together all day everyday? How is that going to feel?” After eighty-five days in a row – together, Jay and I are spending nine days apart (more on that in the weeks to come) I miss him! We have face-timed at least twice a day. I can share, it’s been pretty easy being right along side this man. And after I get back from this time away from him, if possible, I don’t want us apart again for the remainder of this year.

Distance or together makes my heart grow fonder for this man. It is his heart that moves me, his head that challenges me, and his humor that delights me – AND surprises me at times.

This week I may not have many pictures to share, however I pray I’ve shared my heart. Whether it is your spouse, your family (God-given or chosen), or dear friends; may you be the humus in those relationships. May you find some time to share with those around you the love you have been taught to give – freely and unconditionally.

How does Johnny Cash end his song? “It can lift you up, Never let you down, Take the world and turn it all around, Ever since time, no thing’s ever been found. That’s stronger than love.”

Blessings through your week.

Around the Boise area. I think the phrase is “Wandering without Reason”, however that really messes with my OCD. Jay’s favorite phrase is, “All those who wander are not lost.”. Let’s do a little wandering…..

One of our favorite hikes in Boise is Table Rock. It’s a 3.7 mile hike with a 890 vertical climb. The Harris record is 24 minutes to the top, created by, of course, Papa Jay. Anyone who can beat his time will receive $50.00. Luke and his friend, Jackson, did a tag team and beat the record, however no one single handedly has beaten him yet. What I love about it is walking to the cross. It’s kind of like being home and seeing the cross on Gazebo Hill. May they never be forced to take either one down.

On Saturday morning downtown Boise has a wonderful farmer’s market. Each of the kids have their favorite booth to stop. Grandma Jelly’s (Not a typo, that’s what they call me) is The Creperie. Each year they seem to add to their savory menu. This year’s new one has asparagus. My favorite is the ham and cheese with a jalapeño mango sauce. When berry season hits we will all be there each week buying all we can. These farmers grow the best blackberries and blueberries and seems to be a common favorite in the Harris household.

The girls really enjoyed the homemade tamales since the beignet booth wasn’t there this week.

Just like Jay and Lionfish spearing, I love a great sunset. I could stop every night to watch it if possible. There has been some pretty amazing sunsets produced since we have been in Boise. We are struggling, however, seeing them each night since the sun does not set until 9:15ish. It’s difficult to get used to the late sunsets. Curacao’s were 6:45ish, then off to dinner. Here we are beginning to settle in for bed, not walking outside somewhere to watch one. However, we have managed to catch a few. I also love how they light up the hills on the west slopes.

Back to the subject of wandering – since we have five grandchildren I have assigned each one a day to keep up with their wandering Papa. Instead of “Where’s Jay”, around here the phrase is “Where’s Papa”. So, when I hear that I simply ask, “Who’s day is it?” My day is Wednesday. So, that is date day/night for us while in Boise. That means just the two of us. (Grandkids get us all the other days.).

Our first date day was a small road trip to Kirkham hotsprings approximately 1 1/2 hours from Boise in Lowman, Idaho. Gorgeous drive. Just along the side of the highway and nestled on the south fork of the Payette river are these streams and pools of steaming water – up to 180 degrees steaming. Somewhere I read Idaho had the most hot springs than any other state. But I can’t remember what I read that or maybe I dreamt it and making it up. Non-the-less, they are great.

The river is so high from the snowmelt and rains it is coming into some of the lower hotspring pools and cooling them off.

We liked the sign no dogs, no glass, no nudity. Thankful for the no nudity clause. We spent several hours soothing our souls, washing away our stress, and placing ourselves in a state of relaxation soaking in different temperatured pools and cooling off by sticking our feet into the cold river. Oh, the bonus – no cellphone service available. Jay found the perfect temperature shower to hang out under.

While wandering around looking for the perfect temperatured pool, a young couple invited us over to their area. They said there were warm and cold water spots a step away and were happy to share. So we decided to join them and hear their story. After all, that’s what we are doing during this year adventure, hearing people’s stories. Just as we found a comfy spot, the young lady decides to pull out a cigarette, or that’s what we thought until she asked, “Do you mind? We would be happy to share.”. Ohhh, share!!! Yes, we declined and thought we were up wind, however the aroma was swirling around the pool. Let us make this perfectly clear, we did not inhale. Hmm, Is that the “warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air” phrase in the Eagles’ song Hotel California? Thank goodness we had been doing a little free diving and could hold our breath some. A sweet couple with a great story of their young lives.

Several mornings we get to have some hungry kids over breakfast. The best part of Chef Papa’s day is to be the short order cook as they trickle in one by one shortly after waking up later in the morning.

This week the mornings have been pretty busy – Lilly volleyball clinics, Daniel cross country training, Rosie and Luke orthodontist appointments along with friends spending the night, and Noah hanging with his friends that have come home from their first year of college. Grandma Jelly Uber drives, Papa cooks.

However busy, we are managing to get our miles in and my sweet husband picking bouquets of flowers for me along the way.

By the way, one more story regarding date day, when we made our way back to Boise and regained access to cell service, our phones were dinging like crazy….”Jelly, can you take Jackson and me to the skate park?”.”Grandma Jelly, are you guys home?” “Papa, where are you?”

Ahhh, the sweet sounds of summer – retired and 1/2 mile away from our precious grandchildren. I’d say that is how you Wander, not lost and with Reason.

We hope you all are enjoying your wandering with or without reason.

Blessings this week.

Hard to believe we have been away from our sweet island for ten days.

Flexibility….nearly packed, we decided to go over to the dive shop to say our good-byes, have a beer and grilled frikandellen, Dutch sausage. As we are sitting there relaxing with the group, Jay gets an email from Aruba Airlines saying our Monday morning flight has been canceled and we would be unable to make our connection. So much for relaxing and hanging with the dive guys….off we go to begin throwing the rest of our stuff in suitcases, clean a condo, and return a car to catch a flight in four hours. Whirlwind!!! A quick good bye, hand over the condo keys to Mikeil D’Angelo, and we’re off.

The good thing about the flexibility is the pilot let Jay up in the front to show him all the great buttons. I don’t think they would do anything like that in the US. Both Jay and the pilot were like young boys with all the instruments – the pilot was as excited to show everything as Jay was getting to watch all of it. A blessing in everything.

We spent the night somewhere in Aruba, then the next in Fort Lauderdale. As we walked into the lobby of our hotel in Fort Lauderdale, there were several aquariums surrounding the bar. One of them had five Lionfish to greet Jay. It was all he could do to not unpack his spears.

One of my goals when diving is to see a seahorse. They are quite elusive. So, I guess being greeted by an aquarium full is good enough. Goal completed for this dive time. The smaller black one was so curious. Everytime we walked up to its aquarium, she/he would unhook and swim all around watching us and showing off.

A great dinner and a beautiful sunset in Fort Lauderdale.

I almost named this blog “Instead of Sweating the Small Stuff, We Are Thankful for the Small Stuff”, such as soft towels and sheets. We didn’t know we were missing things like that until we stepped out of the shower and wrapped that wonderfully soft towel around; then lying down on those soft sheets. Awwh…. “I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart. I will recount all your wonderful deeds”. Romans 11:36. I think one of those things is a dryer with fabric softener.

What are those small things we seem to sweat or even take for granted, but probably should be more thankful for? It certainly has made us think.

After forty-eight hours of traveling – welcome to our Boise home for the next couple months. Our welcoming committee was grandchildren and granddogs.

One of our primary reasons to choose Boise at this time in our travels is the joy of seeing our oldest grandchild, Noah Jay, graduate from high school. I can’t believe he is eighteen. For so many years he was my purpose for continuing to travel to Oklahoma City for work each month. When his parents announced their second pregnancy, I thought how in the world would I have room in my heart for another. He truly had my heart. I soon found out you can love so many (five of them) as much as one. As each one came, my heart just grew bigger. They all have my complete heart. “Grandchildren fill the places in your heart you never knew were empty.”

Oh, look at that precious smile. We are officially Boise State Grandparents -Go Broncos! May we be true to the blue and orange.

And….what a great place to train for our next adventure that begins in August. There are miles and miles of trails all around us. And, we have little people to help us along the way. Our first training hike was nine miles – an out and back along the fast flowing Boise River. (It is so high and fast there is no rafting, kayaking, or jumping off the bridge into the river.). So, out, our training buddy was Master Luke. Back, it was Lilly. 4 1/2 miles each. I believe Lilly enjoyed the hiking less than Luke. She’s busy with anything else besides hiking for the remainder of our training except for July 14th training day. She says, she’s in for Papa’s birthday.

There could have been a little bribing to braid her hair if she would hike. Luke just wanted Cheez-its and ice cream.

Although Rosie would rather paint, we did get her out for a couple miles as well. Next goal is getting Daniel and Noah out with us early mornings, hahaha. Being teenagers, we might have to hike in the evening. They are not morning people.

What fun this summer will be. Our house is 1/2 mile from the grandkids. We are already finding them popping over each day, sometimes for Papa to fix pancakes, sometimes for their hair to be braided, or sometimes just for a round or two of Uno. Even their friends are coming. Needless to say, our grocery bill will be a little higher, however whatever it is, it is money well spent.

Thankful for the small stuff and the memories that will be made – we are truly blessed to have this summer time with the kids. God has created each one in His image and His uniquely designed personalities. More than anything we are thankful to know each of them love Jesus, the best gift of all.

As Billy Graham once said, “The greatest legacy one can pass on to one’s children and grandchildren is not money or material things accumulated in one’s life, but a legacy of character and faith”. May we do just that.

Blessings, Jay and Kelly

As we wrap up this piece of our journey, let me say, if this is how the rest of the year is going to be, WOW, pinch me, I have to be dreaming. I never thought I would have enough to write about on a tiny island like this. There’s still more to explore that we’ve not experienced to share – Maybe next year.

What we do want to share are some of our highlights with a few stats for the trip. I would love to add some videos, however I haven’t figured out after uploading the video how to enable the opening of it.

Cruise ships sailing by 37. Number of dive sites: 70. Number of dives: Jay: 69. Kelly 38. Number of Lionfish speared by Jay: 169, Kelly: 3, Guests: 26. For a grand total of Lionfish not reproducing 198 for this trip. Number of guests: 8. Number of walks by the ocean: 52. Number of sunsets: 63. Number of full moons: 3. Number of beautiful Curacao beaches: 20+. Number of pictures taken: 732 Number of horrible people: 1. Number of wonder people met: too many to count.

Let’s get to Jay’s piece first. Remember all the new Lionfish spearers first-time-out stories? Well, I finally did it. One morning I was tired of swimming by all the little tiny ones, so I asked Jay (Yes, I can talk underwater. All those who have dived with us have experienced how I get Jay’s attention underwater) for the extra spear. Jay said the little ones are the most difficult to spear. Boom!!

Had to put the gloves on. I don’t like to touch fish. The next picture I used a pair of tongs.

This is Jay writing this paragraph for Kelly’s future dive buddies, sharing air with Kelly has an additional benefit. Kelly is a very strong swimmer so all you have to do is clench your teeth onto her octopus and she will drag you along. That’s what I had to do.

Jay’s routine – dive, eat breakfast, then clean fish. We met Gina, the owner of a restaurant named Purinchi’s. If Jay doesn’t feel like cleaning them, Gina buys them from us to serve as one of their fresh catches of the day.

We love Willemstad, day and evening.

Dinner at Fort Nassau looking toward Punda on one side and Otrabanda on the other side of the bay.

And, we love this church. Through so many hugs on Sunday, I was told, “Remember, we are your Curacao family. You always have a place with us.” I’m tearing up just writing this. They will have a special place in my heart always. From Becky, leading worship and translating the sermons, to young Gerald always helping the ladies on and off the stage, all special memories. Sister Marlene, the pastor’s wife, can preach the word! She had a word from the Lord this past week for all of us Mothers. Thank you, Sister Marlene, for the love you show to the ladies in this congregation. This is a place where I would have loved to add a special video.

A great picture of Pastor John, his wife, Sister Marlene, preaching that day, and Becky interpreting.

You can’t travel without experiencing the food, right? Dessert first – a freshly made stroopwafel. You won’t eat another packaged one after you experience fresh and still warm.

Salad for breakfast and wine in the evening on the deck.

I will miss our walks in the evenings to see the sunset and to feed the eels leftover pieces of Lionfish. It’s a wonderful walking trail along the shoreline. So many people out in the evenings – walking, running, swimming, yoga, and crossfit groups – all along this trail every evening.

So many things to see – forts, museums, and landhuis’.

This is where the original Blue Curacao (pronounced cure-a-sow. Sow as in a female pig)

This is my new little special needs friend, Eva -15 years old, and her mother, Monica. They have come from Germany for a few weeks in order for Eva to receive therapy. Her therapy time is swimming with the dolphins. The Sea Aquarium has an amazing center to help with young people such as Eva. She and I were attached almost immediately. We met at the Curacao distillery tour. Jay and I ended up driving the two of them to their place, then Monica and Eva gave us a tour.

Although Officer Grant was very nice to us the visits to Curacao Polis won’t be missed. I wanted to get a picture with Officer Grant but didn’t get the courage to ask him. He and so many other kind people on this island we will have to store them in our own memory.

Jakob, Royal Palm’s Manager.

There is an extreme rare medical condition called congenital insensitivity to pain, CIP. Those who suffer with this are unable to feel pain. As I think of our previous condo owner, that might not have been such a terrible condition to have. However, the absence of pain can spiral into even more trouble. Such as, if Jay can’t feel if he gets poked with a Lionfish’s venomous spine, he wouldn’t know to get heat on it immediately. Then, the next thing you know, whatever has been poked is swelling and who knows what would be next. We may not like the pain whether it is physical or emotional, but we need it. It helps us to assess the wisdom of our choices. It sometimes forces us to seek out wisdom from God and/or from those He places in our paths who are better qualified in a particular field, like officer Grant, or Jakob, the resort manager; instead of being left to our nice comfy routines. When people or things such as psycho condo owner come into our lives, God has these funny ways of bringing us back and giving us the opportunity to see His grace and mercy in the midst of the chaos. There are so many stories in the bible where discomfort helped them seek God’s refuge. So, we are thankful to have the gift of pain. We are thankful for those who have helped us through this one uncomfortable and stressful moment in this trip. And we are thankful for God’s refuge of so many wonderful memories and blessings each day. I suppose I’m saying is if we didn’t have some pain, how would we know the blessings that are all around? The blessing in all this? When we were able to donate all the items to the men’s facility that were purchased to make the big house liveable, well, the face of Richard says it all.

“Beyond all these put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.”. Colossians 3:14

Let’s move on……..

Awh, the ships that went by….cruise ships, barges, pilot boats, US and Dutch coast guards, sailboats and fishing boats

Our wonderful U.S. Coast Guard taking care of this island.

The Scientology sick ship that was quarantined due to the measles finally was able to leave on the 17th. The above picture was taken on the 16th docked at the back of the bay. Twenty-eight people were still on board quarantined.

We had the privilege to celebrate quite a few holidays during our stay. This was a parade on Easter Monday. The King’s Birthday was a big celebration. Willemstad was hopping that day!

So many different animals. Here are just a few highlights. This is the other place I wished I could have added videos.

A wonderful highlight to this trip is this motley crew – The Dive Shop guys. These are the cute Dutch guys making sure we had air tanks each day. They helped with neice Beka’s discovery dive. And gave us all the helpful hints around the island. From left to right : Ruby, Jeroen (sounds like “ye-rohn”), Lionfish spearer Jay, his trusted spotter Kelly, Boeke, and Freso. A handsome group, I think.

We arrived with a full moon and we leave with a full moon. We even had one in the middle of our trip. This is 3:00 a.m. looking out the kitchen window of the big house.

And so the sun sets on this fabulous time in Curacao, however sad we might be to leave the wonderful people we have met along the way; we are excited to see what is in store as we begin adventures in another place. So, I think of the Proverbs that says, “Let your eyes look directly ahead and let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you.”

Oh, the title of this blog in English? “Thanks so much and good-bye, Curacao, we love you.

Before I begin the walk on the wildside, I can’t believe I forgot to mention in last week’s blog a couple of guests that have been with us from the beginning. Meet Flat Mark and Flat Vicki. They are our travel partners throughout the year. I love being their photographer as they come along side of us doing the fun things such as steering the catamaran on a sunny Saturday afternoon, spearing Lionfish, hanging out on the bridge with us, and best of all, drinking wine on the “Big House” deck.

You guys are the best. Thanks for traveling with us. It is interesting that I would think about the two of you just as I’m writing the words “Wild Side”.

There are so many songs about wild life such as Outasight “The Wild Life” or  Paul McCartney and  Wings “Wild Life”.  Or how about “Jack & Jack “Wild Life”, Talking Heads “Wild, Wild Life”, or Maroon 5 “Animals”.  All a bit too… for this blog except for maybe Paul McCartney’s “Wild Life”.  However, how can you forget the all time, “Walk On The Wild Side” by Lou Reed.  Here’s a line from it with some words Jay will like:  “And the Lionfish go doo-doo, doo, doo-doo.  Doo-doo-doo, doo, doo-doo, doo-doo, Then they said hey, Jay, take a walk on the wild side, Hey, Jay, take a walk on the wild side….”  I’ve said the word Lionfish and you’ve seen your weekly picture of one as well, so Jay is happy with this blog already.

Personally, I like this quote from Cecil Francis Alexander instead, “All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful The Lord God made them all.”

As a true Rancho Murietian, we love our wildlife (unless they are eating our landscape).  This week I want to share the wildlife we come across on our drives and walks that have become a part of our routine here on the island.

We wait on these guys

The piglets are getting so much bigger.

Wildlife, by Lisa Firestone, “I dream of a world where we live side by side, stretching miles across untouched lands and in oceans deep and purest blue, every living creature with the home and space it needs to live and is entitled to, I dream respect and compassion are one day unanimous expression of ours, and I dream every corner of the planet looks and feels as safe as it does from space. I dream.”

To end this week I have to add a couple of new underwater pictures.  The rays have been a bit elusive on this trip. At the turn on yesterday’s morning dive, Jay and I saw a large plume of sand like a dust storm billowing several feet away.  Jay swam closer as I was kind of taking a little nap underwater when he got my attention to take a picture.  When the billow cleared, all of a sudden it was this:

Look at that stinger!!! And the photo does not do justice to the size of the ray. It was huge. When you see this, how do you not think of Steve Irwin and reflect on the wildlife he loved so much?  So, today, I’ll end with an Irwin Family quote:  “If you can reach out and touch and love and be with wildlife, you will forever be changed, and you will want to make the world a better place.”  ….Loving, even the deer and turkey as they are eating our landscape.

Te siguiente tempo, (Until next time) Blessings.

Lilly girl, get that Beach Boys cassette tape out, we’re about to sing Kokomo the Curacao way…

Off the Dutch Antilles, There’s a place called Kokomo. That’s where you wanna go to get away from it all…. Diver’s by the sand, Beach chairs – at your hand. We’ll be full-moon dancin’ to the steel drum band…. Down in Kokomo….Westpunt, Lagun, ooh I wanna take you to Sint Michiel, JanTheil, come on dushi mama, Porto Mari, Scharloo, Jay Baby why don’t we go…to the top of Mount Christoffel….all on the Dutch Antilles.

That’s my song after diving Kokomo.

It’s week five on the island and I think you all can tell how much we love it. It is an easy island to live on. I’ve so much to share and haven’t wanted these blogs to be too long. So this week let’s tour around the island above the water. The length of the island runs WNW (Westpunt) to ESE (Oostpunt).

Beginning in the Westpunt area is Mount Christoffel, named after Saint Christopher. If you’ve ever downloaded the “All Trails” app on your phone, this is the only trail listed in Curacao. The word trail is a loose term, however there are yellow arrows painted on some trees or rocks to mark the way to the top. Many areas feel more like rock climbing. You have to be at the trail head no later than 10:00 a.m. to hike. They have had to rescue too many due to the heat. So they close the gates. It takes about an hour (Jay Harris record is a bit less) to go up and a little bit longer to come down. Mount Christoffel is the highest point on the island at an elevation of 1,220′. The view is amazing and a must do if you are in good shape and like a good hike.

All along the south side of the island are beautiful beaches, most of them called Playa…..something. Each morning the fishermen come into Playa Grande to clean and sell their freshly caught fish. After cleaning the fish, they put some of the remains into this bay where all the turtles come to eat. It’s close to a guaranteed turtle spotting when snorkeling in these waters. We bought a 30″ tuna for $25.00. It made about 12 tuna steaks. Cheap and delicious eating.

As we continue this tour of the island, we stopped for lunch after a dive, of course, at Playa Forti. There are cliffs approximately 40′ high. We had a great view of watching all the crazy people jumping off into the beautiful crystal blue waters. Of course, we rated each jump. I gave most of them 10’s just for the bravery of jumping.

By the way, from Noordpunt to Oostpunt, there are 70 dive spots.

One of our favorite areas is Playa Porto Mari. This is, again, a great dive spot with a beautiful beach for lounging. There is a restaurant/bar where the food looks really good. The fun and unique part of this area are the pigs. We haven’t seen them in the water, but hopefully before we leave so we can have a picture to give to our Lilly girl. In the same area is Coral Estates. This is where I would like to live. Jay said, in your dreams, dushi. Let’s just say, $27.00 to sit by the pool.

Then there is a little place called Kokomo. Palm trees swaying in the sand…..That’s where we wanna go, down to Kokomo. Beautiful waters, double reef to dive, a swing in the waters, and comfortable lounge chairs in the sun or shade, your choice. The perfect little place to hang out in the mornings or afternoons.

Blubaai (Blue Bay) is in Playa de Muro. If you ever want to come for vacation, this is a wonderful place to stay. One weekend a month Bluebaai hosts “Clean up the Reefs”. Bring your gear and gloves, they furnish a tank and a net bag for the divers to pick up the trash at the bottom of the ocean. This month it was on Easter. Because of the crazy condo owner, I felt like I needed to be at the house, so I missed Clean the Reef. However, Jay represented us well. Instead of picking up the trash, you guessed it, he cleaned up the Lionfish on the reefs. He said there were twelve people showed up to help with the effort. My kind of people!! My kind of place, right?

Also at Blubaai, we joined a group one Saturday to hang on a sailboat for the day. Definitely a must when you come to the Island.

Piscadera is the area we live right now. This is the area we watch the ships sail by and have been cleaning up the trash on the sides of the road. The Hilton Inn is just down the hill from our place. On Sunday evening just in time to watch the sunset is “Yoga on the Pier”. A little hard on the knees, but fun and relaxing. Piscadera has some of the best walking paths too. It’s a great place to practice spearing as well.

One of the places for a frequent walk from Piscadera along the edge of the ocean is to Fish row. This is a stretch along the waterfront where a few restaurants open when they have the fresh catches. We have made friends with Gina at Purinchi’s. She buys Jay’s extra Lionfish or she’ll cook it up for us. We found a place next door to Gina.

We have finally made our way to the capital, Willemstad. Willemstad is broken up into three different areas, Otrabanda, Punda, and Scharloo. This is where the beautifully colored buildings that you see in picures. It is one of the UNESCO World Heritage sites. UNESCO stands for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. It was formed after WWII with a purpose to build defenses of peace in the minds of everyone, through education, science and culture for everyone.

Punda is the more vibrant life and great for shopping. On Thursday (our new date night) we like to go to Punda. In addition to the shopping, there is delicious restaurants, street bands and dancing, and at 8:15, fireworks for two minutes. Yes, every Thursday. They call it Thursday Night Vibes. The walkway between Otrabunda and Punda is the Queen Emma Bridge. This is a 548′ pontoon bridge that spans across the Sint Annabaai completed in 1888. After the completion of the 185′ tall Queen Juliana bridge in 1974, Queen Emma was closed to vehicles. It is lit up each night. Since we’ve been here they have changed the colors on the bridge three times. We love to watch it swing open and close to the variety of ship traffic – cargo container, tankers, small cruise ships, coast guard (US and Curacao) just to name a few. I’ve even been standing on the bridge while it was opening for the patrol boats. You don’t have to get stuck on the bridge, there is a ferry you can take to cross.

Near the bridge is one of the “Lock your Love hearts” that are in a few places all over the world. We definitely have Punda hearts and have locked it in place. We still have the keys, however I plan to throw them away before we leave.

Also in Willamsted are some artists. We have met a couple. Lisette is a lionfish hunter like Jay. She takes the fins and tails from the pesky things and makes beautiful jewelry. No, they don’t smell fishy. You can see her work and find a place that sells it from her website – lionfishcaribbean.com.

And, Melissa, is a painter. Her family owns a gift store in Punda where she bases her work. Her “Skadey Cats” have been blessed by the prime minister and is the official cat of the island – Something of that nature. She is a sweet young lady with an outgoing personality. I believe she can be the next famous artists. You can follow her on instagram – dhanarts.

Another artist, we haven’t met, but have read about and seen his pieces on the sides of many buildings in Willamsted is Francis Sling. His work can be seen all over Curacao and gaining quite a bit of notoriety internationally. I mention him because I just finished a book by Francine Rivers called “The Masterpiece” This young gentleman reminds me of the character, Roman. Yes, Tobi, I finally finished the book. The funniest piece to that is on the island, we are attending a Victory Outreach. So funny how she mentions that in the epiloge.. Here are a couple of pieces, not the best ones, but the ones I’ve walked by.

Driving over the big bridge, Queen Juliana, is Jan Thiel, Mambo Beach, and several other Playa’s….. We have not explored this area much except for a few dives and one Sunday Salsa night at Mambo Beach with the nieces. Hey Beka and Annie, “Mi piacerebbe ballare con le tue figlie”, “I would like to dance with your daughters,” said in an Italian accent. (Inside joke, you had to be there.) Anyway, this area is where all the big sailboatd and yachts live. It is also pretty touristy for all the cruise ships. So that’s why we haven’t explored it much.

That ends the brief overview tour of this wonderful island. I have touched on a few of the many things to see and do, however, there’s so much more such as Kato Caves, Fort tours, Landhuises, and Boka Tabla at Shete Boka. I hope you enjoyed the tour. I recommend coming in person to visit when you have the opportunity. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

….That’s where you wanna go to get away from it all….all on the Dutch Antilles.

Bendishona (Blessings)