Happy New Year?

Can you see the moon?

I think this is the latest I have ever posted for the first time in a new year.  What happened?  I kicked off 2022 by running a half marathon on New Year's Day.  It was windy, but I got it done.  We started revival at church on Tuesday night, January 4th, and by the time we got home I was feeling feverish and achy.  I woke up Wednesday feeling horrible and so did Les.  Chills, fever, cough, the works.  We tested negative for COVID, so it appears we "just" had the flu.  The worst of it was over for me after a few days, while Les got hit a bit harder.

 

 

Last week I felt back to normal and revival continued at church.  This week started off good, then we got our COVID booster on Tuesday.  Like clockwork we both started feeling sick by that night.  This lasted about 24 hours and now the only thing left is a dull ache in my upper arm at the injection site.  I've told several people that we are just getting all the yucky stuff out of the way in January and now the rest of 2022 is going to be fantastic!

I went for a trail run this morning and it was wonderful!  We got a lot of rain in late December and a little bit this week so the trail is in fantastic shape.  I ran four miles before turning around.  All the pictures in this post are from this morning's run.  At about 4.6 miles I saw two cows - one on each side of the trail.  Neither of them were the least bit interested in me.

I finished 2021 down a total of 32 pounds.  I had been down 33 but picked up a pound over Christmas.  As of this morning I am down a total of 34.5.  One pound from the goal weight I set a little over a year ago!  It's been slow but steady.  I've enjoyed birthdays, weddings, and other celebrations.  We've traveled, eaten out, eaten pizza and ice cream.  What I've done is gone back to the basics of tracking what I eat and eating reasonable portions.  My running is better than it has been in years.

We're closing out our third week of revival and it has been so good. We've had many services where we just lingered in the altars.  God is still moving and I'm excited to see what He has in store for 2022!

Friday Update

 It's been a few weeks since I posted about my weight loss journey so I thought I'd give an update.

A little over a week ago I got really sick.  Pre-2020, I would have just let it take its course, but you know, COVID.  I went to the doctor last Friday and it was confirmed that I had strep throat.  I was pretty sure that was the case because it is the one illness I have had repeatedly through the years.  I started on an antibiotic on Friday.  Sadly, I had to stay home from church on Sunday since I still wasn't feeling good at all.  I've slowly come out of it and was able to go out for a five mile run/walk this morning.  At least it wasn't COVID, right?

 

As far as my weight loss goes, I've continued doing really well with my eating.  When my throat was at its worst, all I wanted for several days was yogurt, pudding and ice cream.  I've stayed within my points budget throughout and hoped for the best. Today was weigh in day for week 15 and I am now down 22.5 pounds!  That continues to be an average of 1.5 pounds per week.

Obviously, seeing so much movement on the scale is a huge motivator, but I'm also feeling so much better overall.  I'm trying not to spend too much time kicking myself over the fact that I gained the weight at all, or that I didn't do something about it sooner.  That is the past.  Today I choose to healthy, even as I recover from strep throat!

2020 Review

Warning: Pollyanna post ahead!  That's right, I'm recapping 2020, but I'm only writing about the good.  None of us are going to forget what COVID did to 2020, but there was definitely some good thrown in.  Please don't judge me as insensitive.  I know it's been tough.  The losses have been tremendous.  In the past month four people I know passed away - two from cancer, two from COVID.  BUT GOD... GOD is still good!

January:

I started the year thinking I was going to study visions in the Bible, but turned to studying "fear not" after reading those words in four different passages in my Bible reading for the first two days of the year.

Les' nephew, Reece, spent a month with us.  He was in his senior year of high school and got a job working on the filming of a TV show in our town.  His hours were crazy, sometimes he'd go in at 3:00 p.m. and get off at 3:00 a.m. but we enjoyed having him and getting to know him a little better.

February:

We took a quick trip to Fresno to celebrate Elder Morton's 80 birthday.

 

I didn't blog about it, but we celebrated Valentine's Day in Hawaii.  Les had received a gift card from his trumpet student to Morton's Steakhouse and we really enjoyed ourselves!

 

March:

Sis. White asked me to speak at ladies prayer on March 10th.  I spoke about worry and the peace that comes from God.  Little did I know that God was preparing our hearts and minds!

April:

I read (and blogged about) Lessons from Pollyanna.  I guess you could say this post is about playing the "Glad Game."

We celebrated by 56th birthday and rode my age in kilometers!

May:

We celebrated our 29th anniversary by building a planter wall!  It was hard, back breaking work, but we also had a lot of fun.  We've lived in this house for almost 20 years and met more of our neighbors during that time than ever before.  We did what we always do - worked together and laughed a ton!

 

June:

For a few weeks we were able to have church inside again!  We still had to wear masks and social distance, but after months of online church it felt SO good to be together.

 

July:

We had unexpected visitors - our nephew, Reece, along with two of his friends were on a summer road trip and stopped at our place for a couple nights.  

Our church had "Quarantined Revival."  We were back to online church, but that couldn't stop revival.  Only heaven will tell the story of what God did this year through online church services!

August:

We celebrated Les' 57th birthday with another bike ride!  My first 100 kilometer ride.  And a Bodacious Cinnamon Roll!!

 

 

September:

We began having church services in our parking lot.  Victory Without Borders brought our church back together again. 

 

 

One of our nieces got engaged!

We also took a trip to Tennessee that I never blogged about!  We got to see Les' Mom and Pops, along with his sister and her family.  I flew home after a few days and Les joined Lance in Georgia for their delayed annual cycling trip.

October:

We did a few practice hikes in preparation for our November trip to the Grand Canyon.

 

November:

I got new hiking boots - purple, of course!

 

Our wall was finally completed!  We hired a contractor to do the finish work - stucco, caps, and stone work.  The first crew he sent made a mess of the stone so we had to wait a while.  The second guy was a master at his craft and it now looks awesome!  We're looking forward to Spring when we can do some planting.

 

We celebrated Thanksgiving in Arizona and I still haven't blogged about the Grand Canyon!

 

December:

After the Supreme Court sided with a Southern California church, Los Angeles county reversed its ban on indoor services.  We were back inside again for our final services of 2020!

Another one of our nieces got engaged!  Yes, that's right, TWO of our nieces got engaged in 2020!

Les and I had a wonderful Christmas at home - all our gifts were cycling, running or coffee related!

Les' new mug that says, "Fuelin' Up for Cycling"

 

I went for a nice walk this morning, under the light of a huge full moon!

 

 

Tell me something good about 2020!

Our Arizona Thanksgiving

Merry Christmas Eve!  I started this post after we got home from Arizona.  Then I tripped and blackened my eye.  Typing with one eye swollen shut just wasn't cutting it.  Then I fell into a bit of a writing slump.  So here I am writing about Thanksgiving on Christmas Eve!

 

Since we were able to spend Thanksgiving 2019 with the McElhaney crew, our plan for this year was to be with my family.  In September my uncle who normally hosts our gathering let us know he wouldn't be doing that this year.  Not even knowing how restrictive the holiday would end up being in California, we decided to take a trip for just the two of us.

Our criteria:  within driving distance, out of California, somewhere we could be active outside, and somewhere cold.  Our top two choices were southern Utah and Flagstaff.  They were both around 500 miles.  I started searching AirBnB and VRBO and finally decided on Flagstaff.  We found a cute townhouse that would allow us to cook our own food and we were set.

 

We drove (actually my awesome husband did all the driving for this trip) part way on Sunday, November 22nd and arrived in Flagstaff on Monday, November 23rd.  Much of our route was the same that Les and Lance took in 2017 when they rode their bicycles across the country.  Les had so many stories from those first few days of their trip.  (If you've never read Les' blog from that trip, you owe it to yourself to take the time and do so.  It's here: http://mcbraam.blogspot.com/)

 

We made a grocery run on Monday night and started settling in.  Our rental had everything.  We've stayed in a lot of rentals over the years (especially in Hawaii) and this one had the best kitchen.  There were enough dishes to fill the dishwasher and not run out.  Every type of pot or pan was available.  It was at the end of a circle drive and completely private.  It was a duplex, but we never saw or heard anyone next door.  There was open land directly behind us and though we were less than three miles from Interstate 40, it felt so far away.  The fireplace was also a bonus.

We went for a relatively flat hike on Tuesday, just getting acclimated to the elevation - Flagstaff is at about 6,900 feet, while we live at 1,000 feet! We spent Wednesday at the Grand Canyon and took hundreds of pictures.  It's SO amazing!  I'll do a separate post because the Grand Canyon deserves it.

Our Thanksgiving day started slow.  We ate breakfast, texted with our families, and relaxed.  A little after noon, we finally loaded up our bikes and headed out.  We rode the 15 mile Mormon Lake Loop.  It was a beautiful day!  The route was hilly, but fun.

We wanted to eat out for our Thanksgiving dinner.  Our first choice was Cracker Barrel, but with a 90 minute wait, we decided to pass.  We end up at the Northern Pines Restaurant, connected to the Days Inn.  They were serving a Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings and could seat us immediately.  It wasn't our typical Thanksgiving feast with family, but we enjoyed it.  We got pie to go and both slices were excellent!

Our plan for Friday was to not get in the car!  I was going to go for a run and Les was going to ride his bike.  The weather had other ideas.  It was cold like it had been all week, but the wind was howling.   We basically hibernated for the day and thoroughly enjoyed it!

We checked out on Saturday morning and headed to Sedona, with plans to drive to Needles to spend the night.  With no plans or reservations, it was tough to find an activity.  We finally booked a trolley tour and it was just right.  I'd definitely like to go back to Sedona for a longer visit.

 

We spent the night in Needles and drove the rest of the way home on Sunday.  We got an early start and were able to avoid too much traffic.  All in all, it wasn't a typical Thanksgiving, but it was a great one!

Hope Came at Christmas

I received this poem from my aunt yesterday:

Twas a month before Christmas, and all through the town,
People wore masks, that covered their frown.
The frown had begun way back in the spring,
When a global pandemic changed everything.

They called it corona, it brought with it fear,
It didn't bring good time. It didn't bring cheer.
Contagious and deadly, this virus spread fast,
Like a wildfire that starts when fueled by gas.

Airplanes were grounded, travel was banned,
Borders were closed across air, sea and land.
As the world entered lock down to flatten the curve,
The economy halted, and folks lost their verve.

From March to July we rode the first wave,
People stayed home, they tried to behave.
When summer emerged the lock down was lifted,
But away from caution, many folks drifted.

Now it's November and cases are spiking,
Wave two has arrived, much to our disliking.
Front line workers, doctors and nurses,
Try to save people, from riding in hearses.

This virus is awful, this Covid-19,
There isn't a cure. There is no vaccine.
It's true that this year has had sadness a plenty,
We'll never forget, the year 2020.

And just 'round the corner - the holiday season,
But why be merry? Is there even one reason?
To decorate the house and put up the tree,
When no one will see it, no-one but me.

But outside my window the snow gently falls,
And I think to myself, let's deck the halls!
So, I gather the ribbon, the garland and bows,
As I play those old carols, my happiness grows.

Christmas ain't cancelled and neither is hope.
If we lean on each other, I know we can cope.

- by Shawna Hickling

Shortly after receiving that poem, our monthly church bulletin came out.  This came from our pastor:

During the best of times when God brings to us extra special blessings, the righteous say that God was with us. However, the blessing that was laid in Bethlehem’s manger, did not come during the good times. Challenging government edicts were bringing much hardship to the people of God, and the Light of the World was revealed in the darkest of night.

This year we celebrate the birth of our Savior, in the midst of a world-wide exhausting plague. Our normal routines of church, home, and school have left us with a fatigue, that begs for things to get back to normal. Our cause for celebration is that through the gift of the Holy Ghost, we have Immanuel (God with us) all the way through a pandemic.

~ Pastor White 

In spite of the many, many, many ways the government has pushed and pulled us through COVID-19, hope isn't cancelled.  Jesus came to bring hope!

Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins... Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us... For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  (from Matthew chapter 1 and Luke chapter 2.)

30 Days of Thanks (Today's 2 for 1)

I'm pulling a little inspiration from November 2010 this month.  In a year that has had its share of trouble, I want to be more thankful.  I KNOW I am blessed and I want to show that everyday of the year.  I'm going to use these prompts from The Idea Room.  Feel free to join me on your own blog!

November 1st:  Enjoy

I am so thankful that I got to enjoy another church service yesterday!  With the coming colder weather, we moved our outdoor service to 12:00 noon.  Of course, So Cal weather decided to go back to summer and it was 85 degrees out.  We had canopies set up, but the sun still heated us up.  Still, I enjoyed hearing Pastor White continue his series on "Delivered, Translated, Forgiven" from Colossians 1:13-16.

November 2nd: Falling

Jude 1:24-25 says, "Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen."

 

I can be a bit klutzy, but that's not what this verse is talking about. Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible says, "It is God only who, amidst the temptations of the world, can keep us from falling; but, blessed be his name, he can do it, and if we trust in him he will."  I am thankful for a God Who is able to keep us from falling!  

Victory Without Borders

 

In our ever changing COVID world, churches have been greatly impacted.  Online only.  Limited in-building services.  No singing.   Back to online only.  I have missed my church family!  Last night Victory Tabernacle kicked off our outdoor services.  We will be meeting at 6:00 p.m. on Sundays and 7:00 p.m. on Wednesdays.

 

It was so good to gather together once again!  I know God is everywhere and He has used this time to reach souls through online services - we have a brand new brother who heard the gospel online and was baptized a few weeks ago!  Still, it felt wonderful to be together.  Socially distanced by families and wearing masks, we sang and worshiped.

We had another baptism last night at the end of service!  God is still working!

What have your church services been like lately?

PSA: Look Both Ways Before You Cross the Street

Since March we have seen an increase of people exercising in our neighborhood.  I am happy to see this - active people tend to be healthier.  One problem I keep seeing is where people are walking, running, and riding.  The rule of thumb is:

• Bicycles should be on the road, in the bike lane if there is one.  They should be going the same direction as traffic.  Bicycles do not belong on the sidewalk.
  
• Pedestrians (runners and walkers) should be on the sidewalk if there is one.  If there is no sidewalk, they would be going the opposite direction as traffic, facing vehicles and bicycles.

 

I have seen so many people on the wrong side of the road.  Here's why it matters:

If you are walking or running with your back to traffic and someone else is walking or running facing traffic, one of you will need to step further into the street to maintain social distance.  If a cyclists is in the bike lane at the same time, the pedestrian moving with traffic will more than likely step right into the path of the cyclist.

 

Way back in March, in the early days of social distancing, I was out for a bike ride.  I was riding where I was suppose to be.  I saw a runner up ahead, running with his back to traffic.  He was not on the road, but on the grass.  Just as I caught him, he decided to step into the street.  I had about a second to react before he yelled, "Six feet!"  He never even glanced over his shoulder.  He was just the first of many who have stepped into the street without looking.  Isn't that something you're taught in preschool?

Stay safe out there!  Be active, be healthy, be courteous, and look both ways!

Our Quarantine Trip

 

Last year we rented a condo on Oahu.  This is the third time we've done this, most years we just get a vacation rental for a few weeks at a time, but this particular condo came up and the price was right.  We moved our stuff in last October.  We were there in October, November and December 2019.  We were back in January and February.  And then there was March....

 

We flew to Hawaii on March 15th and our world seemed to change hourly.  I blogged about it here and here.   We've been following the news and wondering when we would return to Hawaii.  Originally we thought maybe June or July.  Hawaii has been trying to put a program in place that would allow people to get tested for COVID-19 before arriving.  If they tested negative they would not have to quarantine.  The program was suppose to start on August 1st, then it got pushed to September 1st, and now it has been pushed to October 1st.

Our lease ends on September 30th so we knew we were going to have to take a trip and that trip would include quarantine.  The quarantine is 14 days or the length of your stay, whichever is shorter.  So we decided to take the shortest trip possible and get our stuff cleared out of the condo.

We flew to Hawaii on Sunday, arriving around 12:30 p.m. and spent Monday packing all our belongings.  We then flew home on the 2:15 p.m. flight on Tuesday!  In our almost 30 years of marriage, we have taken approximately 50 trips to Hawaii (most of them in the last 7 1/2 years due to Les' job) but none were this short or different!

 

Of course the first difference was wearing a mask from the time we arrived at the airport in Los Angeles (we drove our car to the airport instead of using Lyft) until we were safely in our condo in Hawaii.  It's okay to take your mask off while eating or drinking, so we nibbled our way across the Pacific.  The flight to Hawaii was about 1/2 full, but it seemed much longer than what we are use to.  We both had a variety of masks so we could switch them up.  I definitely prefer my Walz mask because it ties behind my neck/head and doesn't loop around my ears.

Once we arrived in Honolulu we went through a quarantine line (just picture going through international customs.)  The state of Hawaii now has a mandatory online form that is to be filled out 24 hours before arrival.  We received a QR code that we had to show to an airport employee.  Because we are part time residents, arriving without a hotel reservation, they asked us about our condo lease.  Fortunately I had printed a copy and was able to show it to them.  We were able to proceed to baggage claim after that.  Due to the delay for paperwork, our bags were waiting for us when we got to baggage claim and we were on our way.

Monday was a busy day!  We had SO much stuff.  The condo is furnished, but did not include a coffee maker (what were they thinking?)  So along with clothes, shoes, and other personal items, I had a kitchen to pack up.  There was food that I had purchased way back in March.  Some of it was non-perishable and some was in the freezer.  There was a few things in the refrigerator that had to be thrown out.  Les and I both cringe when throwing food away - we were raised to not waste food, but it couldn't be helped.

By Monday evening our car was loaded with all the things that normally stay on the island.  All that remained in the condo was the things we would take home with us.  According to my watch, I took over 15,000 steps - all inside the condo!

Still on California time, we were in bed pretty early Monday night.  Of course then we were awake at 4:00 Tuesday morning!  We knew we had to take our car to Les' office building where it will be parked until we can return, so we decided to head out early to avoid interacting with any people.  I confess that we took the long way back to the condo, enjoying some much needed fresh air!

Our landlord came at 11:00 to do our walk through, our shuttle driver arrived at 11:30 and we were headed home!  So far we both feel fine.  We took all the necessary precautions, had minimal contact with people, and are hoping COVID will pass us by.

The overwhelming feeling that Les and I both had was sadness.  The streets of Honolulu were almost empty.  The sounds of trolleys were silent.  We love Hawaii and the people who live there.  We know they are hurting as their economy relies so much on tourism.   We'll go back as soon as it is safe to do so!

 

If you're considering traveling by air, be prepared for a lot of changes!  The one change that has been a long time coming is that airplanes are now boarding from the back - something that should have been happening all along.  There was no coffee, tea, or ice on board.  Hawaiian Airlines has always served a meal, but it was minimal.  We each took an empty Thermos that we filled with coffee after going through security before leaving LAX and we purchased tea for the trip home.  Everyone on board cooperated so the crew was able to do their job efficiently with minimal stress.  More than anything, I'm glad we got it done and we're back home.

Celebrating Birthday Week!

Tomorrow is Les' birthday.  We'll be taking our bikes to Ventura to escape the heat and ride 100 kilometers.  I'll have a full report on that later this week.  Since we'll be gone most of the day, I decided to make his cake yesterday.  His request was German chocolate cake and homemade vanilla ice cream.  We sampled both last night and they were off the charts!  

 

Of course I can't celebrate Les' birthday without remembering the day BEFORE his 28th birthday.  The day he met me!   He told his version last year at the Hawaii District Marriage Retreat:

I first remember seeing Kathy coming out of her brother's car Friday night of camp meeting, August 18, 1989.  I thought she was the most beautiful girl in the world.  I didn't meet her then, but after church service I was introduced to her.  Later that evening we went out to eat as a group and were at the restaurant at midnight when it became my birthday and Kathy and the group sang "Happy birthday to me."  What a lady, what a night!

My version is quite a bit longer!  I've posted our story many times here on the blog, but for those of you who don't want to take the time to find it, here is it:

March 23, 1989 was the last night of Youth Convention in Bakersfield. This was the only night I had gone that year. I had driven down with my friend, Yvonne. Shortly after service, I was asked out by a young man that I had met the previous weekend. He was visiting from another church in another state (and that's all the details you're gonna get about him!)

Yvonne and I had wandered off on our own when our friend, Bro. Lee Wilson, came up. He was very excited to introduce us to a young man he had met while he and his family were evangelizing. A very funny exchange occurred at this point:

Me: "I'm already going out with someone"
Bro. Wilson: "Just come on, you never know"

I repeated these same words over and over as Yvonne and I followed him from one side of the lobby to the other. I was not convinced that I needed to meet anyone else that night. Although I knew my friends were getting concerned since I was soon to be TWENTY FIVE AND NOT MARRIED!! Oh my!! I obviously needed help!!

An exchange that lasted mere seconds occurred. I was introduced to Les McElhaney, but I had it in my mind, "I'm not interested, I'm already going out with someone else." And that was the end of it! Or so I thought! Yvonne and Bro. Wilson's wife, Ruby, were shocked at how rude I was! To tell you how brief our meeting was, Les doesn't even remember it!! What I didn't know until months later, Les was currently driving a Corvette and he had money in his wallet should a date opportunity arise!! (Anyone that knows Les, knows that money in his wallet is a rarity, but that's another story for another time!)

And now for THE REST OF THE STORY (taken from Our Anniversary... kinda, in a way, posted on August 18, 2008):

 
 

August 18, 1989 was the final night of Camp Meeting in Santa Maria. I had gone for the week and was planning on staying for Senior Camp which started the next day. This was my final year of eligibility as a camper, having turned 25 the previous April.

After service, my friend Yvonne and I were talking to Ruby Wilson when we spotted "him". His name was Les McElhaney and I had been introduced (briefly) to him at Youth Convention the previous March. At Youth Convention I was already going out with someone else, so I wasn't extremely friendly to Les - much to Yvonne and Ruby's dismay! This time, I was "free" and decided to thank God for second chances! When Les didn't even remember meeting me, I was happy to start over! This night was the beginning of something very special that eventually led to our marriage on May 25, 1991.

We spent all week of Senior Camp getting acquainted and finding out our common likes and dislikes. Because I had been a Senior Camp fixture for so many years, and Les was actually on the staff, the rest of the staff was very kind to let us stay out later than usual getting to know each other. I remember Bro. Harvey Cantrell coming by, shining his giant flashlight on us, smiling and letting us continue sitting there!! And the Hoppers helped me out when a certain pest from Fresno wanted to sit in on all our conversations!

And that's the whole story! A brief meeting, a second chance, and a lifetime of love! I'm still glad I met Les 20 years ago today, even though he doesn't remember me!! 

*It's been over 30 years now and I'm happier than ever!  2020 has us doing things a little differently, but even behind our masks, we're happiest together.