The Sun Keeps Shining!

Seriously, we have had so much sunshine here in England. We were expected it to rain everyday since we arrived and the majority of the time we have had sunshine. Granted, we are used to gray, rain, and a lot of it. So now that we have a bit more variety than the typical gray, we are loving it. We have had some great times in the outdoors since we have been here (pics to follow). Two weekends ago we went to the Lake District with a friend and did some hiking and had a cup of tea at an old slate shop that they have turned into somewhat of an outlet and tea house next to this great little creek. And then last weekend we ventured out with two guys who invited us to climb a 'mountain'. We didn't think too much of it since this is England but it was actually a nice sized mountain and quite a hike. We ended up being able to climb up two peaks that day. It was nice to get out despite the cold and rain and climb a mountain.
I apologize for not having pictures up for quite awhile so hopefully today I can get some more up. We are much more settled in and enjoying the time. Enjoy the pictures!

Capernwary Hall Photos

We wanted to post some photos of the actual Capernwray Hall castle and grounds. It is a pretty amazing castle and beautiful scenery within walking distance. It is nice to be able to walk out the castle doors and go for a 30 minute walk before dinner. And you don't even need to get into your car and drive somewhere. We also have been having beautiful weather since we have been here. Most days are a little cool but with plenty of sunshine.

Capernwray Hall. Rural England. And footpaths.

Yes, we are learning a lot about God, the Bible, ourselves, and community...but we also have stumbled upon another major discovery: Rural english footpaths. These have been our little retreats since stumbling upon them and God most definitely lead us to them! For those unaware with the english footpaths, they are quite different from the american hiking trails. You will be walking along a rural road and then there will be this little sign that says, 'public footpath'. You can miss them quite easily. Then they either start right there or they force you to walk through someone's driveway and to their fence. They have various forms of steps/ladders/openings through people's fences and then they open into some field. The interesting part is that it is usually not clear where the path is or the next fence ladder. The public footpath meanders through people's fields and meadows and then onto the next person's field or meadow and the trick is finding the next small sign which locates the next segment of the path. It is usually not obvious at all. Kindra and I have had some great walks through the english countryside via these public footpaths. Tomorrow we are going walking on a new one which supposedly leads to an old stone tower that looks out over the countryside. Yes, I know....these footpaths are awesome!! The posted pics are of the various hidden signs and paths.

We made it to England alive and well!

So Kindra and I have made it to England alive and well. We arrived in London on Wednesday morning, September 25th and then made our way from the airport to the city to start the next mission...finding a place to stay. It seems we move from one adventure or unknown event to the next and it has definitely grown our faith and trust in God. We found a great little bed + breakfast just south of Westminster Abbey and Parliament....and we discovered what simple people we were. The breakfast kept us there three nights....it was fantastic. The English do have some subtle variations in their traditional breakfast. One being baked beans and the other stewed tomatoes. We did enjoy our time in London despite our weak american dollar. We hit the main tourist spots, saw a play ( Billy Eliot ), ate at a couple pubs, and adjusted to the english accent. We recovered from jet lag and then made our way north at the end of the week to the school. This also a test publish to see how things look with images.

Why are we always ten years behind the fads?

Somehow Kindra and I always seem to be ten years behind the fads. While dating, we discovered juicing and how carrots would change our lives forever. For about two weeks we purchased more carrots than we had in the rest of our entire lives. Yet we were sure we had stumbled upon this new lifestyle that would keep us healthy and living longer! My parents gave us their Juice Jr that they had purchased ten years prior (when juicing was the 'thing') and we were off to discovering the new 'us'! We would juice carrots with lemons, apples, and i'm sure other types of fruits. It was great for quite awhile....but then the fatigue of cleaning that huge juicer and then the whole storage thing. granted, we developed a system for all of this. Oh yeah, and we were running. Yes, we were feelin good and lookin great! But eventually the glamour of it all faded and i think we discovered history documentaries or it might have been scooters. not sure...but either way, our juicing days are over.

So this is our first post and hopefully many more.