Our last day and a half in Lynden, and more opportunities to connect with friends! These pictures actually comprise the end of Day 7 and all of Day 8 – Canada and back.

Justin and Brandi Bailey met us for coffee Tuesday afternoon. We talked philosophy of ministry and were very encouraged by many of the things they’re thinking through. Thanks for taking the time to hang out Justin and Brandi!

That evening we had dinner with the Jacobsen family. The Jacobsens and Floreens go way back, so it was fun to catch up with them and get to know the kids better. Deb gave each of us journals with instructions to record God’s faithfulness to us in the coming years. Thanks Deb – we couldn’t think of a better gift or encouragement!

Wednesday morning was just beautiful, so we stopped to take some pictures on the way to Canada.

This is my little camera’s interpretation of what I’m sure will be a fabulous photo from Matt’s camera.

You know, Canada looks awfully similar to the USA. This is our one picture in Canada. We went up for two reasons: 1) to get a stamp in our passports so that our international insurance will be activated, and 2) to eat lunch at WhiteSpot. The passport was easy, and lunch was delicious! Last time Matt was there – quite a while ago – he got the kids’ meal, which comes in a pirate ship. We went the adult route with our menu selections, but we did look longingly at a pirate ship that passed our table…

On the way back from Canada we stopped to visit John and Jeannie Bargen at Cedar Springs. They have a beautiful log home that they build themselves, and they run a retreat center at Cedar Springs. Their very evident love for us and their testimonies to God’s faithfulness and goodness to them were truly encouraging to our hearts! Thank you for your kind hospitality John and Jeannie!

We took a few minutes to look around Cedar Springs while we were there. It was beautiful in the winter, but I imagine it would be absolutely stunning in the spring and summer!

I found a cute boy at Cedar Springs, so I took a picture with him! Matt told me that if we had lived in the Lynden area, Cedar Springs is likely where he would have proposed to me. So he asked me to marry him while we were there, and I said Yes! =)

Continuing on our way back to Lynden, we saw more of the beautiful countryside. There are lots of farms in the area – mostly cows, or evidence that corn was grown there.

Find the Matt. Ah yes, more picture opportunities!

We had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with the Cummins family over dinner. Bill discipled Matt while he was growing up and learning to make decisions, so has made a significant impact on Matt’s life. And a number of people have said they’d like to come visit us in Malawi, but the Cummins family is one of those that I really think just might do it! (And we would LOVE that!) Bill, Michelle, and Stephen all had to run after dinner, so we only got a pic of Adria, Ashley, and Aiden. We’re looking forward to seeing them in Africa to get a picture of the whole family.

We’re back on the road now! We left Lynden this morning on our way to Seattle for lunch and dinner plans, and then on to Portland to spend the night with friends. More to come soon!

We haven’t finished day 7 yet, but I have so many pictures to post that I need to do it now – because it’s SNOWING!!! We’ve continued to meet with lots of people here in Lynden and have been so blessed by new and old friends here. Take a look!

This picture is in honor of Todd and Colleen Likkel. We had forgotten our camera battery charger in California, and when our camera finally went the way of the uncharged, the Likkels loaned us their camera until Monday when we could get to their store – RadioShack – to buy a new charger. Thanks Todd and Colleen! We really appreciate your practical and timely ministry to us!

Mark and Catherine Nonhoff have been our hosts here in Lynden. They are a fabulous couple whom we have loved over the years and are now very much family to us. Our schedule has filled up so quickly here that we had to book a lunch with them in order to get some extended quality time with them! We are so blessed by their friendship and love to us, and encouraged by their faith and their testimony of God’s faithfulness. Thanks so much Mark and Catherine!

On the way back from lunch, we stopped at Lynden’s little town park. So cute!

In between hanging out with people, we took a couple hours on Monday to write some notes, catch up on email (kind of…), and Matt was able to file all his sales taxes for the photography business. Yay!

Two missing photos here… and I told you I would do better. =( We had a wonderful evening with the Stuart family, talking missions, marriage proposals, cultural adjustment, and good stories. We were very encouraged by them, and our hearts were warmed by laughter and fellowship.

The second missing photo is one that everyone present is probably ok with having missed. Matt had a chance to get together with a bunch of guys who have a small group meeting at Starbucks at 5:30 in the morning. That’s a little early for a photo. But Matt had a great time of fellowship with a group of guys he’d grown up with, getting to hear about their lives now and how they can encourage one another.

And then it snowed! That’s our car right behind us – it kind of blends into the rest of the white.

Matt cleaned the snow off the windows so that we could drive, using the southern California version of a scraper – a squeegee.

Downtown Lynden covered in snow and cloud-cover.

Ah, that’s a better picture of the windmill!

Loving the snow!

We took a quick drive out to Berthusen Park to see the snow, and the drive itself was amazing!

It’s been about 5 years since I’ve seen snow fall. It’s beautiful!

Yay! Still loving the snow!

We know who our most faithful blog readers are – this goes out to both of you! =)

The real photographer got ahold of the camera and we got some extra-beautiful snow pictures!

After our park and snow adventure, we had the opportunity to meet Delaine and Emily Bailey for coffee/tea and some quality time with them. They hadn’t been able to make it to the presentation on Sunday evening, so we were able to share with them about Malawi and some of the things we’re thinking through about ministry and plans. It was a great time of stories, sharing, and encouragement. Thanks for taking the time to encourage and spur us on Baileys!

When we got back to the car, it had started snowing heavier. There’s a quiet, heavy sensation to thick snow – so peaceful and so fun!

Matt started his day at Starbucks with the guys, and we find ourselves back here now, waiting for another friend to show up.

We’re getting together with more friends this evening, and then tomorrow we’re off to Canada. Stay tuned!

And the Roadtrip continues! Matt gave the grand tour of Lynden (which Rachel loves!), and we had a chance to see more friends and then share the ministry in Malawi with the church Matt grew up in, Grace Baptist Fellowship in Lynden.

Downtown Lynden. Not the best angle to take a picture of a windmill, but trust me, it’s an impressive windmill!

The house on Front Street. Fond memories of falling out of trees, secret window signals with a friend down the street… all kinds of good memories here. =)

The house on Main Street. Well, the play house on Main Street. The real house is there too, but this is an awesome play/tree house. The look on Matt’s face says it all – it’s a very Calvin and Hobbes face… so innocent and yet so mischievous!

Harv! Rachel finally got to meet the friends. Harv took a break from homework to come and hang out with us for a while.

And then we had the wonderful opportunity to have dinner with Tim and Melissa Tabert. It was so fun to hear the guys catch up on the years and to meet their beautiful daughter Bethany. Thanks for a great evening Taberts!

Sunday morning and we spoke in the Jr/Sr High Sunday School class. Suffice it to say that a presentation on Malawi that is given to 12-18 year olds does highlight a few more reptiles, bugs, and edible mice…

After church Harv was our chauffeur and tour guide as we went to see a couple more houses the Floreens lived in, and met up with some friends for lunch.

The cool kids picture. Though entirely unintentional, this is probably something like what Matt and Andrew would have posed if they were trying to look casually cool. And looking casually cool is a speciality for Matt, Andrew, and Tim – just ask to see their Jones Soda pic.

The cast of characters – Matt, Andrew, Tim, and Harv. With Rachel and Melissa, just for fun. Andrew drove all the way from Ellensburg to see us – thanks Andrew, it was so good to see you. And we missed you Kelsee!

Andrew’s family used to own the restaurant where we had lunch. At the time it was called Dunny’s, but now it’s a Mexican restaurant, which Andrew dubbed “Dunny’s Del Mexico.” There was a suggestion that someone put a sombrero on the chicken now.

On Sunday evening we had the opportunity to share the ministry in Malawi with about 80 people at Grace Baptist Fellowship. We were so blessed and encouraged by these people, and were so grateful to share with them about Malawi and what our plans are to be involved there. The room was full of people who love the church and who joined in our excitement for what the Lord is doing in Africa!

Special guests for the evening were Rachel’s Uncle Don and Aunt Joan who drove over from Birch Bay to join us. We got to spend a little time with them before the meeting, and it was so great to catch up with them! Thanks for coming Don and Joan – it was a huge encouragement and blessing to us!

After the evening meeting, we headed over to a dessert gathering with a group of friends, some of whom hadn’t been able to make it to the meeting. We enjoyed the time so much that I forgot to take a picture! I’ll try to do better… =)

We have meals with a number of people in the next couple days, and then a trip to Canada to have our passports stamped to activate our international insurance. In the meantime, we might have snow! It’s 24 degrees today, and the southern Californians are cold but loving it! More to come soon!

Day Three of the Roadtrip! After spending the night in Portland, we headed up through Seattle to Lynden, WA, almost on the Canadian boarder. For a couple of southern Californians, the scenery and weather was so refreshing!

969.6 miles: Fairfield Inn at the Portland Airport, the beginning of Day 3.

Somewhere around 975 miles: Mt Hood!

Somewhere around 1000 miles: look at all the trees!

1112.1 miles: Lunch with Austin and Heather at their apartment in Tacoma, WA. Heather and Rachel worked together at the college, and Matt did photography for their wedding about 5 months ago. It was so great to catch up with them!

1117.3 miles: stop for a fill-up at the Port of Tacoma

1147.5 miles: The father of a good friend of ours – Sarah DeWolfe – is in the VA hospital in Seattle, so we stopped by to say Hi. He had JUST left for an appointment though, and the nurse said it would be a while before he came back. So we missed him. =(

1157.1 miles: On a whim, we stopped by to see the Sound and Pike’s Place in Seattle. It was cold!!!

1157.1 miles continued: Pike’s Place. Just for fun, we bought a couple honey sticks here. =)

1157.1 miles continued: We found a large and fascinating antiques store near Pike’s Place. Among other things, they had quite a bit of antique photography equipment…

Our final tribute to Seattle – a pic of the Space Needle. It quickly grew dark, so that was the end of the pictures for Day 3.

Day 4 is Rachel’s first introduction to Matt’s hometown, and Day 5 is Sunday and our presentation at Grace Baptist Fellowship in Lynden. Stay tuned!

The Great Floreen Roadtrips have begun! We have had a great couple of days on the road, covering a lot of highway, and connecting with some great friends. Here’s our pictorial journal…

141.3 miles: Our first stop on the trail – a visit to the Exxon tiger.

330.9 miles: End of Day 1 and beginning of Day 2 – Our second stop was to spend the night with Adam and Shannon Chiappelone in Walnut Creek. We love this couple and so enjoyed spending time in their home again! Shannon and I worked at The Master’s College together, and Matt and Adam were roommates years ago, so we go way back with these two!

450.7 miles: Seems to be a reoccurring theme already… we needed more gas.

But! At this gas location, as the sign informed us, even your dog likes it here!

515.8 miles: Lunch!

530.6 miles: Now this was an interesting stop. You can see from the shiny pavement that it’s been raining. It rained all morning and a couple hours into the afternoon. Ah, the Northwest! But this little building is the Australian hat outlet. There was a big kangaroo sign on the freeway advertising it, so we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try on a few Australian hats. =)

771.2 miles: Dinner at Taco del Mar!

959.1 miles: Our last stop for the day – Dan and Karina Franklin’s home. We had all over lapped at college, so it was fun to catch up with this great couple and hear about the ministry they’re involved in now. We were blessed to hear about the church they’re at and encouraged by their prayers for us! Thanks Dan and Karina!

Off to the hotel, and end of Day 2. That’s all for now – more to come soon!

Taking a quick break from the Malawi 2008 trip stories, I want to share a few new maps I’ve found. I have several boxes of printed maps, so it’s not surprising that I collect digital images of them also. Here are my current African favorites.

First of all, find Malawi. It’s yellow, small, and in the south-east. Most prominently you can find the capital, Lilongwe, where we’ll live.

This map, highlighting the geology and terraine of the continent, reminds me that Malawi is not predominantly sand.

The caption is hard to read this small, but this is Africa in 1771. I didn’t realize that Upper and Lower Ethiopia covered so much territory then!

This map is dedicated to my dad, who really should have been a weatherman.

This is the map that started the African collection. Matt told me that he’d see a map of Africa at night and that it was fascinating. He found it again on a NASA website for me, and I’m truly fascinated! There is actually a dot of light representing Lilongwe, so this must have been taken when the electricity was working!