Good Morning

Nothing more than to share this beautiful sunrise...another Gift from God...

Traveling Home

We woke on Saturday morning, already in Miami. It was with heavy hearts that we got up, got dressed, and got things organized to head off ship. We checked our final bill, and found that we had been charged twice for something, so I headed down to correct the bill.

We headed off ship around 9:15, and loaded a bus bound for Ft Lauderdale, where our flight was to depart from. We arrived there at 10:30, and were told we had to wait until 11 until we could check our luggage....so there we sat for another 30 minutes waiting to check in. Our flight was not until 2pm.

We checked in with the kids once it was late enough (there is a 3 hour difference) and found that Kristin had been sick--with the same stomach bug that hit the Noffsingers prior to them picking up the kids. Ryan had not had it yet. In light of that, we decided that we could not attend Kim's confirmation, and best head home.

After finally checking our luggage, we headed off to get something to eat, and wait for our flight. We visited with friends we were traveling with, and before long, we were on the plane to Philly PA. We arrived just in time to get to our next gate, grab a GREAT Philly steak & cheese (they don't make them like that here in OREGON!) and were on the next flight to Portland. Unfortunately, after we boarded and pushed back from the gate, we sat on the runway for 90 minutes as there was a thunderstorm and high winds. We waited it out, and then finally took off....arriving in Portland at 10:40 rather than 9PM.

Jen came to pick us up, and we headed back to her place to pick up kids & dogs, and head home. She brewed us a pot of coffee and sent us on our way. We arrived home at 1:30--to find that one of our cats had been locked up in error, and had not been able to eat or drink for seven days. Thankfully, she ran to the water bowl....drank a long time, ate, and then was ready for some overdue loving! She is happy and doing great!

We woke Sunday AM at 5:30 (UGH) and could not go back to sleep, so went out to the truck, unloaded our suitcases, and unpacked. We shared the few souveniers we came home with for the kids, and had a very leisurley day. Poor Ryan did come down with the bug...but recovered in about 24 hours, and so far, Bill & I are doing fine.

This was our greeting the afternoon we arrived home. God is so good...

Not Michigan colors...but still very pretty!

Cruising--Day Six & Seven

Thursday, October 23rd--A Day At Sea




Today we slept in--enjoyed just hanging out and had a nice morning. Sean & Tracey went to the dining room for breakfast, and we headed up to the Lido to get coffee & breakfast. After visiting for some time, we headed back down, and visited on the balcony with Sean & Tracey. Around 11, it was time for a nap!! How nice to nap when you want.

While Tracey & I napped...Bill & Sean went to the water slide and bummed around the ship, testing the "water proofness" of Bill's new camera. A few runs down the waterslide with the camera enclosed (after last night's dunk in the hot tub with the empty casing to test first), they were pretty confident that it was a go for Friday's dive!

Bill read for awhile, I did a crossword, Tracey worked on some crotcheing, and Sean read as well. After a few hours of that...it was time for another nap before supper!! What a great day of doing "Nothing"!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24--Nassau, Bahamas



As we arrived in Port this morning, we woke to rain, wind and "uck". We had another late port morning, and Sean, Tracey & Bill had a dive at 10:30 this morning....so as we headed back to our room to get ready to go, despite the weather, it was still warm. I had booked a snorkel trip with Char & Al, and as we got to our room, we found that the dive for Sean, Bill & Tracey had been cancelled. Bummer, as I still had a snorkel trip. I contacted the excursion desk, and talked to a nice gentleman who said since Bill's dive was cancelled, he would refund my excursion in full as well. Yahoo!! Now the four of us had the day to find something to do. We headed off ship around 10:30, and headed into town through the terminal, which was full of booths of wares, and hand made items.

went through some shops, and Sean & Tracey were able to find a dive shop that would take them out at 1:30--return 4:15-4:30ish. This was a bit uncomfortable for us, as we were pulling out of port at 5:30----and that wasn't in our comfort zone, so Bill decided to hang with me, as I had cancelled my snorkel trip. Sean &Tracey headed off and we meandered the streets, Bill being approached for weed many times through out the day. They were clever, and I never heard or saw them. I finally asked one local girl, and she said it was his tattoo (even though Christian) and his sunglasses. Amazing!! Although there was a lot of that around, we never felt threatened, and enjoyed a nice drink & appetizer at Hard Rock Cafe before heading back to the ship.

We got back around 3-3:30--just in time for a nice nap....and some prayer time that Sean & Tracey wouldn't miss the ship!! Thankfully, things didn't seem to feel right for them, and after a series of events (and even being geared up and on the boat) the decided to not dive, and return to the ship. It seems that they just weren't supposed to have another dive. Thankfully, the one they did in St Thomas will be a memorable day for us always.

We headed out for supper--our last night for chocolate melting cake...how sad. We had dinner, headed for our rooms to finish packing to head home--always the saddest part of the trip.

Cruising--Day Four & Five

Tuesday, October 21, 2008—Port of St Thomas USVI

We woke to a beautiful morning, and headed out early to get breakfast, and clear Immigration. We had to go through customs, as we had been in the Bahamas on Monday, and were now entering US Territories.

We waited in line to clear Immigration ourselves, and then waited again, as Immigration had not cleared the ship. We finally got off ship at 8:45 or so (waiting for over an hour, between Immigration, and checking off of the ship) and headed to find a taxi to get us to Coki Beach. Most transportation is a modified F250 or F350 with an open air bench seating area on the chassis of the truck, which has 5 rows, and each row could hold 6-8 people.

We caught one of these and went up and over their “Mountains”, which the tallest was 1450 ft!! We then went through the middle class area, stopped at KMART to drop off a few riders, and then the driver got us into the nicest area of all, and dropped us at Coki Beach.

I was a bit unnerved, as I wondered what Sean got us into, as it looked like a pretty shady place. Sean, Tracey & Bill got their scuba gear, and I was set up with snorkel gear. We boarded the boat, and after a few unsettling moments, we were off into the Caribbean/Atlantic Ocean. St Thomas is where the Caribbean meets the Atlantic. Regardless, it was beautiful…

We stopped at our first site Mingo Key and before long, Toby, the dive master, Sean, Tracey, Bill & another diver that joined us were off. I chatted with Peter (the owner of Coki Beach Dive shop) for awhile, and then donned my snorkel gear, and hit the water. I enjoyed the pelicans fishing while I was snorkeling, and the fish were incredible. I had an enjoyable 30 minutes or so of puttering around while the rest were diving. Bill, Sean & Tracey had about a 50-60 minute dive, and then we were off to our next destination.

On the way between dives, Toby shared history and stories as we moved from one dive spot to the other. Once the divers were all in the water at our second dive spot, Steven's Key, I visited with Peter some more, learning about the islands around, and then I headed into the water to do some more snorkeling. It was great. The divers came up a few minutes after I got in, all anxious to share what they saw. They saw a barracuda, and many beautiful fish under the ledges—what an awesome day for everyone! We HIGHLY recommend Coki Dive Shop for a personalized dive....and now that we've had a small group dive, not sure we can do the big shore excursions again! What a great way to spend the day!! We headed back to shore, all tired, excited, and hungry!

After some lunch and a shower, we headed back out to do some shopping on the pier…not many treasures, but Bill did purchase a camera with an underwater housing. They will be diving in Nassua, and he was bummed to not have a camera to catch all the underwater sites from his first two dives.

We had a great afternoon, and pulled out of St Thomas with a great sunset. What a great port and a great day.

Dinner was great, and the entertainment fun, as Tracey and our waiter Putu cut up the rug to "Shake Shake Shake!!"

Our best towel animal ever...the frog!

Wednesday, October 22, 2008, Port of San Juan, Puerto Rico



We arrived in Port this morning while we were all still sleeping. After the big day yesterday, we all decided to sleep in, as we didn’t have any excursions in San Juan. The weather was cloudy at first, and cooler with a higher humidity. We got dressed, had a leisurely breakfast, and headed out to explore. There wasn’t much to do besides shop, or hit the Bacardi factory, and we decided not to do that…so we did some shopping, exploring, and walked the narrow, crowded streets of Old San Juan, and it certainly was not designed for cars!! I would say 50% of the cars had scrapes, scratches and plain old rust & dents from scraping either buildings, or other cars. It was not some place I would like to drive. It seemed everything traveled East..I never did see a one way street that went west! I think you had to go down to the newer road by the shore to head that direction!We hit a few stores, and then an old park. We could see the sea wall and were high above the shoreline. It was a neat park with pigeons and I expected to see Mary Poppins at any time singing "Feed the Birds"! We headed back to the ship--to the cool air! We could see the one of the Forts from the ship, and although it would have been neat to do, it was not worth the walk up to the fort in the heat. Back for another nap, and then visiting on the balcony. We loved our balcony...and spent a lot of time there. San Juan was not one of the more ‘beachy” ports, but more for those who liked to shop. While it was fun to see...not sure we need to head back there anytime soon!

We had a lazy afternoon, had lunch up on the Lido deck, and then sat & visited with Sean & Tracey, then hit the bar for our Monkey Coconut drink holders! It was fun, and we headed back to our rooms for some R&R before dinner.

Cruising--Day Three

Day Three—Monday, October 20, 2008

Today we started out waking at 7:30, and rolling back over and sleeping until almost 9:30. Being we are at sea all day, we decided it would be a lazy day!

We headed up for breakfast with Sean & Tracey, and then headed off to church service with Al’s church group. Al did a great skit with his previous intern, and her husband who is also a pastor. Being we were in port yesterday, we had church on Monday.

After church, we found Sean & Tracey, who had been to a meeting, we hung out in the room for awhile, and worked out the dive info that we needed to get off the ship tomorrow. Then we headed out to print the info we needed. Being the printer wasn’t working, we headed back to our room to catch a nap, until the tech guy came on at 2pm.

We caught a nap (in our own beds!!!!), then headed out to get our document printed, and then head for lunch. Bill & I had a great Mexican seafood bar….yummy. Sean & Tracey went for fish & chips, and we had a great lunch. We headed back to the rooms to have a fun round of cribbage, and then, what else, but another nap!!

We had a nice afternoon on the balcony…Sean & Bill read, Tracey knitted, and I checked e-mail. I’m halfway through my minutes, and not quite halfway through the trip…ugh!! SO…if you don’t get a final few days of trip, you’ll know why. Also…no pictures due to time, and firewall issues, and with hundred with laptops, I’m certainly not comfortable turning off any of our virus stuff!! So..pictures will wait until we get home. I am logging them, and dating them, so that I can just pop them on…so please check back after we are home.

We had “elegant” night tonight….as not many people did formal night….so, it was ‘Dressier than normal”…so we went ahead and went….it was a great meal (Bill had lobster, I had pasta carbonara…) and of course there is still melting cake….the best way to end a day!

We strolled around the ship…had some photos taken, and then headed back to the room to pack for tomorrow’s excursion to St Thomas. Bill, Sean & Tracey are diving, and I am going on the boat to hang out & snorkel some. We hope to get into downtown during the afternoon, as we’d like to see some of the port. Weather today was rainy in the AM, but turned out to be beautiful. We have sailed past Haiti, and now are passing Puerto Rico, and will be in St Thomas in the AM. Check back tomorrow for more fun news!!

PS. Kristin & Ryan are finally with Jen & Brad…pray that they don’t get the same bug they all had.

Cruising--Day Two

Sunday, October 19th, Cruise, Day Two





We woke this morning at 7:30, already pulling into Half Moon Cay, which is a private island to Carnival. After breakfast, some relaxing on our balcony, and what we thought was ample time for the crowds to catch the tender to the island, we headed out, bathing suits, towels and camera’s in hand. We sat for some time, waiting for our tender number to be called (Tenders are shuttle boats to get you from the ship to shore when the water is too shallow for the ship to dock) and after a rousing game of follow the leader, losing Sean & Tracey (they got on an earlier tender) and some delays, we finally arrived on Half Moon Cay at 12:30. Unfortunately, the luncheon was over at one, so we missed it by the time we finally really knew about it, but we sure enjoyed playing in the green ocean water, and having the fun fish swim around our feet. We enjoyed a few hours on the beach, visiting with Sean & Tracey, and then we headed up to check out the small gift shop, and ran into Char, Al and some of their gang. We went to get into line, and it was backed up way to the beach, so we found a cool spot in the Cabana, (the temps were probably in the 90’s today) and had a great time visiting with friends.

We caught one of the last tenders over to the ship, Char & I ran 8 flights of stairs, and were first in the showers when we arrived back at our cabins!! Bill & Al waited for the elevator…and although not as tired, we still all had a nap after our shower, then headed out to bum around. Bill cancelled a shore dive that he had scheduled, as he, Sean & Tracey were able to secure a boat dive in St Thomas (where we will be on Tuesday), and as he was canceling his beach dive, he heard about a two tank boat dive that had just been added 30 minutes prior…so he called Sean & Tracey, they came down, and all three of them got on the two tank dive out of Nassau, which we will be at on Friday. I opted out of this one, as I think snorkeling will get old fast on our trip in St Thomas…watching them all swim around below.

After our booking, we headed to find a cookie (actually, my mission) and I could not find one cookie on that ship…so opted for a small ice cream cone, and after choosing my cone, finding that the ice cream machine wasn’t working. SO…I had a dry cone, and that held my until our 8pm supper time.

We enjoyed some visiting time on the balcony with sean & Tracey, and then headed out to supper. We had a beautiful sunset, and a great day. The sea is a bit rough tonight, while I like that….not sure Tracey is enjoying it as she turned in early. We’re praying that this won’t bother her too much, and that she will be fine in the morning.

Off to bed…having trouble getting pictures to upload from the ship…so stay tuned..I’ll keep trying!!

Cruising--Day One

Thursday, August 16, 2008

Thursday started off busy, as I started laundry & packing right after Bill left for work. I had some work to do for the dentist, so I went to check my mail while the office computer was signing in. What I found made my heart sink, as Jen & Brady’s kids had the stomach flu. This is where kids & dogs were going while we were on our cruise. OH NO!! NOW WHAT WERE WE GOING TO DO??

I mulled over a few thoughts, chatted with Bill, he mulled over some ideas, we prayed, and after checking with the kids, we decided we would call Grandma Alice to see if she would keep the kids a few days, until Jen & Brady’s kids were well enough to get the kids. The pain of this is that she has to run the kids back home during the day, so they can take care of animals, and then take them back to her house for the night. Both kids are responsible enough to take care of themselves, and the animals. Rex & Sharon, our great neighbors also said they could be on stand by. Before the day was over, Melissa (Jen’s sister) had also called and said she could help with kids & dogs as well. We are SO blessed to have so many willing to help out. Thanks to each of you for the blessings your friendships have brought to us.

The rest of the day was spent packing, prepping kids for their week, and getting through the day. FINALLY Bill got home, we had supper with the kids, and then headed out to drop off kids, and head to Canby to drop off the Suburban so Jen & Brady could get kids and dogs once the kids were better.

Unfortunately, coming into Aurora, 10 minutes from Jen & Brady’s, as the speed limit changes from 55 to 45 to 35 in a matter of minutes, in an area that is downhill, I come upon a police officer, and of course, he pulls out behind me, and pulls me over. Nothing like starting a vacation with a $150.00 speeding ticket. I think that it hurt my ego more than anything….my first speeding ticket. Of course, Bill has been playing it up—giving me a good tease!

Al came to Canby (Jen & Brady’s) to pick us up…as we didn’t even want to go in to catch the flu bug (we said “Hi” from the front lawn through the screen!), and we spent the night in Gresham with Al & Char. The plan was to have Char’s Mom & Dad, Charlie & Arlene, get us to the airport in the morning.

FRIDAY, October 17, 2008
We leave Char & Al’s at 6:15 AM, and arrive at the airport to catch our flight. We have a 4 ½ hour flight to PA, and then another 2 ½ hours to Ft Lauderdale. The day was pretty uneventful, and we arrived at 9pm in Ft Lauderdale, and got to our hotel around 10PM in Miami. We were tired & hungry, as well as worried about Sean & Tracey, who missed their flight in Eugene Friday AM, and were on a later flight, arriving the day of the cruise, instead of the day prior.

After settling in our hotel room, we went down to the lobby to get some dinner (it was only 7PM our time!), and sat around with some great people, and had a blast. We all headed to bed, knowing we had until 11am before we had to head out.




SATURDAY, October 18, 2008

We woke to beautiful sunshine in Miami, and a hot, humid morning. It was probably 80 degrees, with a high humidity by 10AM. We had a leisurely morning, and then sat with friends before boarding the bus to the terminal to catch the ship. We arrived on board around 2pm, (it took us an hour to check in) and were thankful when we heard Tracey and Sean were on the ground in Miami and on the way to the ship. They had flown all night, a crazy schedule to make the ship. Yahoo!!

We had lunch, and then around 2:30 or 3, we were walking to go see if Sean & Tracey had arrived, when Tracey came running across the deck and hugged Bill & I….they were so thankful to be where they should be!! We were thankful to have them there!

Char & I spent some time up on the top side of the ship taking some pictures, while Al napped, Tracey napped (Separate from Al mind you!) and Sean & Bill visited on the balcony.

We cleaned up for supper, and headed to the dining room, where we met up with some friends Ben & Lindy from the last cruise. We had a nice dinner, then headed up to the top of the ship for a walk.

Headed back to our cabin around 12:00, and tucked in, as we are headed to Half Moon Cay tomorrow. Watch for more postings!!

Another WOOD day!!

We woke this morning...5 giggly girls slept until 8:30--and we stayed in bed until 9:20. They did great. I actually was in bed before they were...as I allowed them to watch the end of a movie. They did great, and went to bed without too much event. It was a really fun day for them.


I picked up Ryan from the O'Hara's at 10:30, and got him to his drop off point in town at 11:00. He worked the OSU Beaver Game concession stand again. So, we were short one wood guy today.

Bill hit the pile around 10, I joined at 11:00 and Rex (our great neighbor) joined us around 11:30. Bill got all the big logs cut up, and the three of us (trust me, it took all three of us) to get the logs on the splitter. They were HUGE, but that 34 ton splitter that Rex's brother-in-law loaned us sure was a life saver. It split stuff that the old 20 ton splitter would have bogged down and stopped. It was incredible!! Thanks again Ray...we appreciate your willingness to help and to loan us your toys! Thanks Rex for all your help--we learned lots from you!


Rex, Bill & I worked until around 2:30 when we got the BIG logs moved & split. We sent Rex home to watch his game, as we were all beat. Bill & I pushed on for another 2 hours, and finished cutting & splitting the last three or four logs, and splitting those. We were dead tired when we finished, and had to hook up the splitter to the truck, and clean up. We'd have liked nothing more than to crawl into the shower, and bed.

It took us another 30 minutes to clean up and get the splitter in the garage. We were scared someone might take it if we left it out. Finally, we finished, and hit the shower. Plans were to lay down for an hour before supper--but my muscles were so fatigued, I couldn't relax enough to sleep. I took some valarian root, and went to make supper. Five girls and Bill & I enjoyed a simple supper of pancakes and bacon.

The pile 3 weeks ago...

The pile after the work crew of the last few days...

Bill's little truck has been awesome for bring up wood

OK Bill--I'll say it "I Love Your Little Truck"!!

Two full rows of wood....4'x8'x10ft'....more than two cords put away so far....

The girls had a great time today. Being that Bill & I were down in the field all day, the girls had the whole livingroom and stereo to themselves....lots of dancing, singing and role playing. The did play out for awhile, and although it was sunny, it was cool (a perfect wood cutting day!), so they played in, then out, then in again. Regardless...they had a great time.

Tracey is not feeling well...dizzy spells, and upset tummy...say a prayer for her that she feels better. I told her I'd keep the girls another night, and let her rest.

Ryan finally got home around 10, and all is quiet in the house. He too is exhausted....I think Bill & I have him beat though!

Stay tuned for more events...

The Tea Party

"I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date..

No time to say hello, good-bye, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!"

Boy, did I feel like the White Rabbit today!! I got up as usual with Bill at 5:45 and instead of my normal morning routine it started with getting together a gift basket of prizes for a bunch of little girls. After that task, I baked 2 dozen cupcakes, 6 dozen snickerdoodles (which Kristin finished rolling & baking for me--she by the way, says Grandma's secret for the snickerdoodles is that she rolls them in a mug of cinnamon & sugar, not a bowl!!!!!!), and then went off to help split several cords of wood in the yard. The wood gremlins came today complete with splitter. Mr Rex our neighbor, and his brother-in-law Ray spent several hours splitting wood. Thanks guys...you are much appreciated. I got back in the house by 12:30, showered, and back to party preparations!

Kristin celebrated her 10th birthday today with 7 other little girls. We know her birthday isn't until Tuesday, but it was the only real opportunity we had before the cruise, and since she is having her family party with Ryan in November, it was a way to allow her a time of her own.

Her invatations went out with a cute poem made up by Bill....made to with the teapot song....(Isn't he talented....)

I'm a little teapot,

short and stout,

we're having a party,

please come out!

We will have some supper,

games a& fun,

So come on over,

everyone...

We started a little after 4pm with tea, cupcake frosting, and enjoying some wonderful cream puffs that Tracey made, along with some yummy snickerdoodles. The girls then were all blindfolded as we did a "draw while blind folded game" I gave them a 'thing' to draw, and they drew it. It was pretty funny. I think Natalie won the prize, when she drew a picture of me...you gotta love it. Every one says what a nice smile I have...now you can see it!! Hahahaha....

We played some fun games, and then Kristin had some other fun games the girls all had fun with while I got super ready. We enjoyed supper together, the kids eating first, and then Alyona, Teresa, Bill & I finishing up while Kristin opened her gifts.

Alyona was a blessing & a great help to me today in getting the table ready for supper (after the messy cupcake fun) and helping to rid everthing up while the girls went off to play. Thanks Alyona...I appreciate your help!

All in all, a great day. The O'Hara girls are here for the night....it's been a long time since we've had a sleep over. I want to say Canada was our last time!! Regardless..it's great having the girls around....it's been fun to hear all the giggling...

This White Rabbit is checking out and headed to bed....my very important date!! Check back for more weekend events soon!!

Dr Update

Bill saw the Neurologist for his migraines yesterday. She discussed the results of the head MRI. His report says he has a grossly unremarkable brain!! This in the medical field means "he is normal"!! He showed Ryan his MRI results (proof he has a brain--he asked Ryan if he could provide any proof of his brain), and the DR is going to send us a picture of the brain scan for the kids...and home school class.

The side effects from his Topamax are worth dealing with right now, and we hope that some of those wear out,being that the Topomax seems to beworking for fewer headaches for him. We are done with her for 6 months, unless things flare up. The only appointment that Bill has left is follow up with the Cardiologist after our cruise. Yahoo!

Thanks for your prayers.

Dive Weekend

Congratulatons to Bill--who is now a certified diver! First lake dive


Friday was departure day for the big weekend. Friday morning started off tough, because the kids & I had only a few hours to get the trailer ready to go after a tough week. We worked as a team, accomplished our goals and at 10:00 we pulled out of the drive. As I watched the back of the trailer clear the driveway, I thought, “Oh, gosh, I caught the grapevines and I’m dragging one.” Then it hit me….it was the cord for the trailer…that I forgot to unplug. You all know that sick feeling when you do something stupid…yep, it was there…..and I was thinking…all the stress Bill is under and now he has to fix the plug that I messed up. I pulled over, thinking about where on the way to HP I was going to pick up a replacement plug—and wishing I had the knowledge to do it. Thankfully, the Lord was watching over me, and the cord was just fine…not even bent. I could have kept the secret…but was so thankful, I of course shared. That, and we aren’t home yet to see what the box looks like.

We picked up Bill at 11:00, and were to camp by a little after 1:00. Just in time to set up, and have a nap! We no sooner got inside the trailer after setting up, and the skies opened and it POURED….for hours it poured. Bill & I woke from our nap, and found a huge lake outside the trailer door. Not great when you have three dogs to get in & out. Thankfully, we have a big mat to lay outside the door, and that gets a lot of the junk off their paws before they hit the door.

We headed into Florence to check out the dive spots where Bill needed to be in the morning, and then headed into town to hit our usual Friday night “Florence” spots….Taco Bell, Bi-Mart, Fred Meyer, and Kristin’s favorite—The Dollar Store! We headed back to camp and got Bill’s gear ready for the morning….and yes, it’s still raining!





Saturday we woke to drizzle, and it poured all night. I kept thinking how miserable it would be for everyone to suit up in the rain. Being rainy doesn’t really matter once you are underwater, but gearing up and getting out of gear, it makes a difference. By the time we pulled out of camp, the drizzle had stopped, and as we got closer to the first dive site, it had actually lightened up. We had no rain, and actually, the sun even came out as they did their lake dive. Kristin played on the beach, and I met a local Dentist that works in Eugene. His wife was learning to dive and he & I were the only ones left on shore once they hit the water. Bill did great. He was pretty pumped when he came up. He said he got tired (they were down 30-40 minutes) and was ready to come up, but only needed a rest, and he was ready to go again. They de-briefed everyone after the dive, talked about how things went, and then everyone broke for lunch, and was to meet back at the jetty for an ocean dive.

The weather continued to be good, cloudy, and one short drizzle while we were resting, waiting for the next dive at the North Jetty. Once everyone arrived, the sun again came out and the weather was beautiful for the entire dive time. Once again, Bill came out of the water, very pumped—but this time, very tired. Swimming into and against current is a tough thing. Kristin played on the beach for hours while they waited for the tide, geared up & dove. She had a blast. Ryan, on the other hand was bored silly, and resorted to watching a movie.

Many of the more experienced divers did some crabbing while diving. One guy came up with his limit in crab, and then went back for huge clams (don’t recall the name), but he came back with a bag full….as the limit on those is 30. After the dive, the whole crew of dive masters and volunteer divers cooked up the crab, and clams and put them out for all to feast on. Unfortunately, we didn’t stick around because of dogs, and not knowing the whole routine of “bringing” stuff…along with poor Bill being so tired. I will say this…I have never been around of people who made you feel so welcome before. Everyone was helpful, enjoyable, friendly and fun to be with.

We arrived back at camp around 5:45 and as we parked and were unloading Bill’s gear, it started to rain. God was so good to us today. We had a safe day—great weather, and Bill had so much fun!! Bill showered while I cooked supper, and fell asleep before dinner was even ready. He went to lay down after supper, and said he was only going to rest (yeah, right) and at 8:30, he woke up long enough to brush his teeth, and actually get under the covers! Poor guy was exhausted.

Bill & Erin waiting for their first jetty dive
First Ocean Dive (Bill Green Tank-Erin Yellow Snorkle)

Getting through the foam on his first ocean dive!

Sunday we woke to drizzle. It cleared off while we pulled the trailer to the dive site. There wouldn't be time to go back to get the trailer, and we didn't want to travel north to go south again, so we brought it along! It worked out great, because we had somewhere to eat, and get out of the rain, go pottie...all those necessary things. Once it was decided that Bill was diving at the jetty again, they waited out the tide and dove--and in rolled the Oregon mist! You know the type....the mist that is all day....and true Oregonians do what they planned, and endure the mist! It of course didn't bother the guys diving, and Bill said it was the best dive yet. He went 60 ft, and loved it. Kristin had been on shore for two days collecting shells, all small mind you. One of the master divers brought her a BIG shell, as well as Bill. She had TWO big shells, 4 milliong little shells, and 3 billion rocks and was thrilled.

After the jetty dive we headed to the lake again for the team to finish up their skills, and take a lake tour. It was still a heavy mist as the divers worked on their skills before hitting the water, and Ryan & Kristin decided that they wanted to swim in the lake. It was a balmy 64 degrees--nine degrees warmer than the ocean!! They didn't have suits, but ran to the trailer and made makeshift suits with shorts & t-shirts...and had a blast for TWO hours in the water. Right alongside the divers some of time! The air temp was probably 50's...but they didn't care....they had so much fun, and ran to get dressed when they finally did get out. We spent from 1-5 at the lake...so it was good they were able to pass some time having fun.

Bill finished up his dive, passed his tests, did his paperwork and is now certified!! We met a great group of people. Bill had a great dive partner Erin, and her boyfriend Bryce, both who were so easy to talk to. We also met a great group of instructors, dive masters, and lots of fun people. Being that Bill is hooked...I'm sure we will cross paths with some of these folks again. Once you dive with this group, you are welcome back anytime to dive with them when they have a class going out. They will buddy you up with someone or send you out with a group. A great opportunity for Bill to get some more dive time in a controlled environment, with experienced guys, and makes me feel much better having him go. It looks like tons of fun, but I'm sure not ready to do it....yet!!

We arrived home around 7:30, and by the time we go everything inside and dinner started it was 8:00....we got hung up cracking fresh crab.....it's tough when you have to do it before you can eat!! A great benefit of diving!! Thanks guys for the great crab!!

Congratulations again Bill...we're proud of you!

Cleared to Dive

Yahoo!! After weeks of tests, frustration and worries, Bill has been cleared to dive!

Bill has been poked, prodded, run through a sardine can (TWICE) and had a major stress test. Based on the stress test, and the MRI yesterday, the cardiologist felt confident that he could handle the diving. We haven't had any offical diagnosis, but we do know that he wants to see us sometime in November for follow up. (He's on vacation, then we are)

We are thankful that Bill was able to endure all this...he really was a great sport about it all. His certification dive will be this weekend at the coast, just in time for our upcoming cruise.

Bill has one more appointment on Monday for his headaches, and hoping that she has some other ideas after his MRI on his head.

Keep him in your prayers, that these headaches ease, and they are able to help him with them. Also, for a safe, FUN dive this weekend. We are anxious to go with him to see how it goes!