Two Weeks of Indoor Track

Tim has now completed two races of his indoor season, both at grand Valley State in grand Rapids. Last week he ran a 1-mile in 4:23, about the same as he ran last winter before his spring injury. He led from the gun until about half-way through the race, and finished in fourth place. Last night he ran a 3K, and won it in a personal best time of 8:38, his first track PR in about three seasons, so that was exciting! And now he is done with the "sprints"...

Next Saturday, he will run at Anderson in Indiana, a 5K. We'll keep you posted!

Another Border Kaffuffle

Poor Nikki---

On her way to Grand Rapids yesterday to watch Tim run his opening indoor one-mile, Nikki and her dad, Bill, needed to cross the border, of course, to drop Nikki at the Subaru, now living a lonely life in Port Huron. Bill inadvertently said something about "marriage", and that was when the trouble started. Many questions followed, and finally a declaration that Bill and Nikki would need to park and be interviewed inside. Complying, they found a LARGE line of folks who apparently also needed interviews. They waited in line for more than 2 hours. Then, they were interviewed for about 15 minutes. The good news is, their Alien Fiancee Visa Application now appears in the official computer data, and that confirmed that they were not trying to "sneak" Nikki in to marry her off to an American... and it's nice to know the visa application is moving along. But really... how large is our problem with seditious Dutch-Canadians sneaking into the US?

She eventually did make it to the subaru, and to Grand Rapids, with about 10 minutes to spare before Tim ran his mile. (The race, btw, went well- he ran almost exactly the time he ran last year, prior to his femur fracture: 4:23, and finished 4th). And Bill learned a valuable lesson about not getting too chatty with the border guards who have the power...

A New Job for Elsa

Our darling daughter-in-law, Elsa, has just landed a new job! It's good-bye to shelving the pharmacy and candy supplies at the Bloomington Krogers, and hello to becoming the department secretary at the School of Business at Indiana University. Congratulations, Elsa! And now we will pray that the benefits include an on-campus parking pass, which would make both Elsa and her proud husband very happy commuters!

Indoor track season begins

Tim's first-ever indoor track season is upon us. It is the first time Calvin has run indoor track. He will be trying his skills in three indoor meets: the first of which is scheduled for this Friday, February 15. He plans to run the one-mile, just to get some speed going in his legs. He will then run a 3K on the 22nd of February, followed by a 5K on February 29. I cannot imagine running on an indoor track, nothing but curves, as hard as you can, for something like 15 minutes (and hopefully much less than that...), but he is a glutton for such punishment.

I will be sending e-mail updates through this month of indoor track, and on into the outdoor season. If you would like to be on that list, leave a comment here or send me a private e-mail. If you were on last year's list, you are still on this year's list. I'll also try to post pictures and updates here whenever I can get the photos.

We would appreciate your prayers for Tim. Track is a grueling season, with lots of mileage (now about 80 miles a week), challenging weather for training, hard speed work-outs, and many meets. Please pray for the Lord to gift Tim with wisdom and health, and the discipline to care well for that body of his. And ask that the Lord continue to use Tim's running as a platform for witness to our great God.

A Few More Photos

Hallie

Mom, doing dishes

Kirk

Mom

Marilyn

If you want to see the rest of the photos I took , you can find them here.

The Party Begins

Grandpa was definitely surprised when he walked in: it took him a good 30 minutes to recover!



He really enjoyed all the posters (and they are now in a scrap book at his house).


At first he was pretty confused as he began opening the presents. First he opened the roll of nickels; then a Southwest Airlines drink coupon book and luggage handle cover that said "Luv Handles" on it; the a AAA guide book to Nevada and California....


Finally, he opened the portfolio with the itinerary, tickets, and map. It also had a letter from all his children and grand children in it.

Finally, it all made sense...

Preparing for the surprise party

Yesterday we executed a surprise party for Chris' Dad, Jack, on the occasion of his 70th birthday. It was great fun!

Atalie and Hallie and Kirk and Dave all helped with blowing up the balloons: here, Atalie works on a special plan.

Here, Hallie and Dave work on a plan to drop loads of balloons on Grnadpa when he walks in the door.

Here's how the dining room looked once we had it decorated, complete with the cake and gifts. The "posters" were all over the dining room walls, and it looked great.

Uncle Dave helped the girls make special birthday cards for Grandpa.

Wednesday's Snow

We had a lovely snowstorm here yesterday, and two days of late starts for Dave, which I really love! Give me the spontaneity of a snow day anytime! We got about 4-6 inches in White Rock, with at least twice that much on the hill.

Tim is in a blizzard in Grand Rapids currently, and earning lots of money the hard way: shoveling!

Also, please be praying for our friends at Union University in Tennessee after their horrendous weather, and the tornado that has devastated that campus. I wonder if there really is any such thing as "normal" when we talk about the weather! But I am grateful that normal or not, we know the One who controls the weather, and can trust Him. For more information about union, you can look here or here. I am happy to report that our good friends Mike and Keri Salazar, and Keri's parents, Larry and Vickie Byars, are safe and well. (Mike is a professor at Union.)

Marriage Reminders

Since all the men in my immediate family are now married or planning to be soon, I thought I would post a link to an excellent article here about cherishing ones wife. As this is a "Part One", I am guessing the gals will be addressed, too! It's good read, guys.