Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Adventurously Unexpected


















It started out unexpectedly adventurous. 

The poor dancing girl stepped on a cactus and cried for a good hour while her Papa and I pulled out every last prickle.

Then the thunder storm rolled in.
The rain came.
The wind came.
The hail came.
The tent broke.

We piled the troops into the car and headed for town.

There must have been a lot of broken tents cuz the hotels were full. We finally found a good old Super 8 motel and paid a ridiculous amount of money for a plain room with two double beds for the six of us.

The next morning brought dreams of a lovely beach and a renewed hope that our drive to Nebraska was well worth it.

The beach was beautiful and not very crowded at all. The water felt fabulous and the kids just played ALL-DAY-LONG! :)

I was loving every minute of it.

Then the burb got stuck in the sand...
I mean, reeealy stuck.
Three trucks, a tractor and $60 later, and the burb got un-stuck.


It was HOT there.

But the kids still dug in the dirt and road their bikes, caught toads with their bare hands and went fishing in the little boat.

And the Mama? Well,  I drank a lot of ice water and sat in my chair for hours. It was lovely I tell ya. :)
























































On the way to the hotel The Dancing Girl said it from the back seat,

"Thank you Papa for always taking such good care of us, even in this scary storm." 

In the midst of the chaos, we had treasures with eyes wide open, able to see the blessings in the storm. I love that.

This trip was full of adventure, yes. But it was full of memories too. 

I started this year asking the Lord to give me ample opportunity to truly learn the art of acceptance with joy. And as the days pass and we pack the burb up right full and we take the treasures to far away lands, He's being faithful to teach me the very things things that my heart so deeply desires. 

This time around, He gave us adventure. 

And quite frankly,  I'm so thankful He did.