London Trip

Steve took 16 kids to London January 7-13. They did a combination of ministry, performances, and sightseeing. It was a big hit!

The day Steve left Anna helped him direct the final rehearsal.

Steve likes planes of all shapes and sizes. He's a little obsessed. Maybe someday he'll fly one.

A string quartet that performed in Convent Garden - unbelievable! They were really good, and let's just say, amazingly agile!

Wheaton Academy performances at...

a homeless ministry

Convent Garden

Liverpool Station

and St. Paul's Church.

"Mind the step"(wherever)

"Mind the gap"(in the subway)

"Mind your head" (in the ambulance on the way to the ER)

There were a lot of things to "mind" while over there.

Steve's one time to be alone - he enjoyed an english breakfast from a cafe built in 1759.

Big Ben! At night, it was quite spectacular.


Instead of "Exit", it said "Way out" which is humorous because last year Steve's Winterim class loved this song "Way Out" by Justin Roberts.

Very big fish and chips. Joel, the choir director that works with Steve, evidently was the first person the waiter had ever seen that ate the fish without utensils.

The coolest part of the trip was the opening of our eyes to the spiritual condition of Europe at large. They had a fantastic tour guide who has a heart for Europe and took them to an area to which tourists don't generally go. At an open market, refugees from Afghanistan and all over the Middle East sell all sorts of things. They are basically slaves to whomever paid their way out of the country they came from, as they have to pay the person back. The refugee situation there and all over the area is grave, and many are without hope. Their tour guide was extremely effective in engaging and encouraging the refugees (see her blog at http://kylenanderson.blogspot.com/). God used this trip to open the eyes of the Wheaton Academy students (& teachers) to the physical and spiritual situation of so many people, and to impress upon them the need for missionaries in Europe.

A fantastic, fun, and eye-opening trip. Praise God for doing great works that we asked Him to do.

New York, New York

Steve has now dubbed New York as his favorite city.

From the airplane ride, to the Brooklyn Bridge, it was alllll good.

Bethy was a fan of the airplane, especially while she slept.

I personally enjoyed watching the newest Star Trek movie on Steve's iTouch while flying. Ahhh the joys of 2010. Remember the Oregon Trail game? The people who lived that scenario couldn't get from New York to Chicago in an hour and a half !

Bethy also enjoyed reading the "Sky Mall" magazine.

The views from the plane were tremendous.

We visited Grand Central Station...

and the Brooklyn Bridge.

Steve especially enjoyed walking the Brooklyn Bridge as he is reading "The Great Bridge" by David McCullough at the moment. He filled us in on all the history and facts that came to mind as we walked it.

From the bridge we saw the Statue of Liberty. I was struck by what power it must have had for immigrants sailing across the ocean to the "New World." I want to be like that statue in life, holding up the torch for those sailing the waters without God, saying "This is the way! Come over here!" It was a neat moment.

And for the Aunt Bos (Kim and Julie), we had to take this picture.

Visiting the Lenharts

Last week Steve, Bethy, and I went to New York and one great part of the trip was seeing our fun friends the Lenharts. God put us in each other's lives waaaaaay back during our teacher orientation in 2001. Sarah, Steve, and I began teaching in the Naperville schools together, and we are so thankful for their friendship, though we have been living apart for 6 1/2 years now. We had great fun hanging out together:

Rachel Lenhart (11 months) and Bethy (now 6 months) met for the first time. It is fun to think that in many ways they will "grow up together" as we continue our friendship in the years to come.

Chocolate pasta. Not all it's cracked up to be. Feeling like college students again!

Ahhh, the college days are behind us, as cheerios (the ever-handy toddler snack food) replaced money in our poker games.

Steve and Andrew through the years have played duets of all kinds. This time around they attempted a two-piano concerto on one piano. It was clever, and...interesting.

The guys also took a break and played with the girls for a while.

We also went to go see the Brooklyn Bridge together. A 45 degree day in January - perfect!