Topeka!

Visiting Topeka really felt like home. We were happy to be back and enjoyed catching up with people, though it seemed it was never enough time! This is also where we did most of our business, medical check-ups, shopping for supplies, etc. etc. That part of it all was really exhausting but necessary.Here are Greg, Kristy, Amanda, Jesse & Carter Hiebert at whose new, beautiful home we stayed our last several days. They graciously allowed us to spread all our stuff all over their basement floor to sort, pack and weigh everything for the trip back. They fed us, entertained the kids (and Gerald - they have an indoor basketball court!) and kept us from going insane during this time!

We got to spend an evening with Crystal and Aaron and their three boys - a very busy and happy place indeed!
With our friend, Steve whom we ate out with and got to see our one movie of the summer - "Prince Caspian" yeah!

Riding bikes with the famous "MUD" who is the most vocal of this blog's readership! These are recumbent bikes that we got to ride around the lake. They are a bit tricky to get started, but very relaxing once on the road. Dennis made sure to feed us as much barbecued meat and pork as is humanly possible! It was amazingly delicious and we benefited a little too much from staying with them . . . Of course, they spoiled the girls silly in their role as the Topeka "Grandparents."
I had the privilege of teaching a few years ago with Barb (Dennis' wife) who has now retired and, among many other things, teaches cake decorating classes. Here are two of her admiring pupils getting carried away with icing! Barb and Dennis also hosted a gathering teachers I worked with. It was so great to be able to see these good friends all in one place. I tried to get a picture of their house, but I just couldn't capture it. One side of their living room is all windows facing the woods (yes, this is still Kansas). The view is rather like being in Oregon - I'm not kidding! It's just when you step outside and are covered in sweat in 2.5 seconds that you realize you are not, in fact, in Oregon.
Our beloved Miss Bessie - who was just across the street from us the nine years we lived in Topeka. She was like a grandma to the girls and her home was always a place of respite and relief to me. She and her energetic neighbor, Tonia, hosted a gathering from our old Hillside neighborhood. We sat on their back porch on a perfect evening of visiting with the people who made our neighborhood wonderful!

And there are many, many more people that we got to see and spend precious time with. It's just that by this time, we had used up all the muscles in our picture-taking fingers and stopped carrying our camera around :)

I tried to get a picture of our church on here, but I couldn't get it on, though I will keep trying. Picture or no picture, they were amazing. Gracious, welcoming, and loving - they opened their arms to us and we loved being back with them! We got to speak at our church (where the multi-talented worship team learned "The Lord's Prayer" in Arabic to sing with us), had a book discussion meeting and a wonderful picnic at the lake the night before we left. We stayed for over a week with our pastor, David & Emily Buller and their two kids (and one who will be arriving in very soon). They provided childcare, cars, food, and lots of encouragement while we ran around in a frenzy of business. Wow!

How can we possibly thank all these fabulous people?