Do the Pullayup!

What a blast! We took Gabe to the Pullayup Fair on Tuesday night. He is such a kick in the pants! We started off with the rides and just laughed as our animated little boy turned those rides into joy rides! He waved, yelled hi, and on the air planes he would yell, "Yeee Ha!" as his plane rose into the air. He wanted more, more, more! But, the fun had to end and we ate dinner. Then it was time to move onto the farm animals. But, I have to admit, I think that I would have liked to see him on those rides all night long, even more than he would have liked to be on those rides all night long.

Beginning of Fall

As Fall has creeped back into our lives, we have enjoyed the warm days and cooler evenings together. We have started our Seahawks mania and Gabe has thoroughly enjoyed the games with us in his new helmet, jersey and pants. He has loved playing in the garden and just sits and enjoys pouring dirt on himself. And, last but not least, we have all been stretched and are exhausted as this new schoolyear has begun. . . I think the picture of Mike and Gabe on the couch at my parents house sums it all up! :0)

Veggie Tales Live!

We surprised Gabe and took him to Veggie Tales Live at the Christian Faith Center. We were pumped up for a fun filled evening . . . unfortunately, the 2 year old that we took with us had different plans. We're still wondering who that kid was. I swear we put Gabriel into the car, but when we got out at the church, we suddenly discovered that we must have pulled someone else's kid out of the car. He was so grumpy, wanted to go home, was hungry, etc. Sadly, the Veggie Tales failed at perking up this kiddo, but mommy and daddy still had a pretty good time.

Papa & Nana's

Over the past month we've been up to my parents' home to help do a little work for them and visit after being gone to Brazil and all of the construction that we've been working on together this summer.
Papa had to take his boy on a ride on both of his tractors, we scarfed down blackberries and played out on the farm.

Brazil

Wow! I know this is so late. We have been crazy busy this summer, and leading into the school year, we have not managed to slow down. So, better late than never, here is our amazing trip to Brazil.

We were asked to coach a boys' basketball tour team to Brazil. Our youngest was 15 and our oldest was 24. We played 5 games against various club teams. Sports are mostly for those who can afford to pay to play. And, since they don't have sports in their schools, we were asked to put on clinics for kids in the mornings.

Brazil is a 3rd world country. Most of these kids that we worked with had very little. Basketball is a hope that they can grasp onto. Some kids showed up to learn without shoes. So, our guys would literally take their shoes off and give them to those kids. A simple pair of Nikes are priced at $3-500! So, as we traveled around Sao Paulo and Nova Odessa, our boys began to realize that we were there for so much more than basketball.

We first stayed in Sao Paulo where we were separated into homestays from a local church that our hosts were supported to be missionaries. Fernando and Patricia work directly with Athletes in Action alongside Susan and Rogerio Soares. In Sao Paulo the kids believed that we were almost famous. They mobbed us in the school that we held clinics at and the VBS that we played at with the children.

After three days, we traveled two hours to Nova Odessa where our good friends Susan and Rogerio Soares live on an AIA camp. They hold camps on the weekends for kids so they can come learn basketball but also learn about Christ. We stayed there for the remainder of our trip. Our boys gave and gave most of their luggage. After each game or in the middle of our clinics, our guys would give their testimonies and talk with others about Christ and how He has affected their lives. It was wonderful!