Drive to Utah

Yesterday we got in the car with my sister Kelly, her husband Joe and baby Isla and drove to Utah to visit family on Thanksgiving. Here's a few pics from the beautiful drive through northern Arizona/southern Utah....

Isla hangin' out in the front with Kelly and Joe

One funny thing that happened was the directions Kelly and Joe printed from google maps took us right through Zion National Park, with no warning. It would have been a pleasant surprise except for the 25 dollar fee to drive through there! That poor park ranger gets to break that news to people quite often. To avoid the fee we would have had to backtrack an hour and take another route. Thanks for the warning google maps! We definitely enjoyed the view as we drove through Zion though. We are planning to come back on Friday to Zion, so fortunately our fee is good for one week and we would have had to pay then anyways. Here's a few shots from zion. I notice that pictures don't really capture this place.

In Zion we ran into a family of big horn sheep right off the road, where the road enters a tunnel. Above are the kids hanging out on the cliffside right above the tunnel. Can you see them? They blend in pretty good! The parents (below) were right next to the road, paying no mind to the cars driving by, stopping and watching them!

Today is Thanksgiving, and I am very thankful to get to spend time with my Dad and stepmom Penny together with Heather, and my twin sister Kelly and her husband Joe and baby Isla. We get to meet Penny's sons Tim and Brian this Thanksgiving too, and our half-brother Scott is here too. Thankful to see family that we don't get to see very often.

Haircut

Elise got her first (real) haircut today. Guess what they gave her afterwards? She was very excited. She loves succers!

Here's some other (fairly) recent pictures.

It is a challenge to describe a ministry and its impact before having seen it in person. This is a challenge that Heather and I have as we prepare to serve with MAF and share this ministry with people. The best way to find out the specifics of MAF's impact in Indonesia has been both talking to and reading the news letters of MAF families who are already out there. But it feels like trying to soak in a beautiful view by looking through a paper-towell tube sometimes!

Today I read the newsletter of an MAF pilot from Wamena, one of the bases we very well could end up on in Papua, Indonesia. It was fascinating to read his colorful description of Wamena and the flying that he does. A few things that stuck out...

"One missionary told me "It took you 50 seconds to fly over what it takes me a whole day to hike!"

"I personally medevac a critically ill or injured person almost every day I fly."

(picture....caption) "Difficult flight.....taking a patient home so he can die. His mom lays her hand on her son while we pray before departing."

(picture....caption) "Best part....bringing a very sick woman to Wamena so she can go to the hospital."

(picture...caption) "A celebration at a new airstrip called Sinokla. For a time I was the only pilot serving this remote airstrip! A dangerous 5 day hike to Wamena from this village is a 30 minute flight for me!"

If you would like to read these stories for yourself and see the pictures, check out MAF Pilot Isaac Rogers' newsletter here

Idaho or Bust....

Yes, today Heather and I pack up to head back out to MAF headquarters again in Nampa, Idaho.

"Wait a minute, I thought you weren't supposed to go back until February?!?!"

That was our original plan, until we found this out......take it away Elise!

Yes that's right, Elise is going to be a big sister! Little baby Lundholm is due in May. We are very excited! And clearly you can see so is Elise. Well I don't think she really knows all that is wrapped up in that little phrase "sister" that we taught her to say. I think come May she may be changing her tune just a little bit! But we'll see!

So back to the story....what does that do with us going to Idaho early? Our little peanut is due at the beginning of May, right at the end of the two and a half months of training that we were planning on doing then. Fortunately, the last two weeks are a stand-alone training that they run twice a year, called the Non Technical part (as opposed to the technical training of flying and maintenance). So graciously, MAF allowed us to come to the non-technical training that starts October 8.

So we're heading out to Boise in the morning for two weeks of preparation for living in a different culture. We will learn things like cultural adaptation, cooking from scratch for Heather, a two day marriage seminar to help give us tools to help our marriage overseas. If you think of it, pray that we learn this training well, and that it sticks well in our minds, because there will be several months between the training and our actual departure for Indonesia (which will hopefully be around June, after the baby is born.) Once we get to Indonesia, it will be very handy to remember the things we will learn over the next couple weeks.

A few hair-oriented pictures....

Elise with some serious bed-head

Mommy gives Elise her first ever pony tail