We're Home...

I always hate to blog that we're about to leave town, letting anyone and everyone know that our house is empty! But now that we're home again, I'll update on where we've been. :)

Mark had a conference in San Diego and I tagged along for a few days of doing absolutely nothing. It was WONDERFUL and we had a great time getting away from the craziness of life. The weather was up and down, with a couple of cloudy days, but I was thankful for the clouds. It gave me an excuse to lay in bed and read all day! We also got a few opportunities to get outside and enjoy the sun too. And, lots of time to go to dinner in the evenings, go see the movie Mission Impossible 3 (yes, I had mixed feelings about supporting Tom Cruise, but it was worth it!), and we even caught a Padres baseball game the last night. (which made Mark a very happy camper!)

The girls went to Gammy and Papa Ron's house for a few days, and were, of course, begging to stay longer when we picked them up last night. They had a great time "getting away" too, and spent every day outside playing in the dirt, riding horses, holding the new baby chicks, and apparently having alot more fun than they do here at home!

The best part of being away for a while, is that wonderful feeling of hugging my sweet girls when I get back home. They each grew a foot while I was gone, and talk more than I remember them talking last Thursday. :) And, it's so good to be unpacking and getting settled again here.

Of course, I will have to get re-adjusted to the fact that I can't read for hours on end each day, because I definitely got addicted to that daily schedule! While I was gone, I read a few great books, that many of you have probably already read. But, just in case you haven't....

"Boy Meets Girl" was a hilarious easy-read that I got from Alyssa. PERFECT for this trip. I kept laughing out loud while I was reading it and Mark kept saying "What? What's so funny? Tell me!" So, he practically read it too, because I kept having to read him the funny parts. GREAT one Alyssa!

"The Red Tent" was one I have been wanting to read for a long time and really enjoyed. I haven't finished the last few chapters, but this is an interesting historically-based fiction book about Jacob, Leah, Rachel, and the story of their children. After studying this family in Ladies Bible Class this year, I loved reading what might have happened in a family like that long ago.

"The DaVinci Code" was probably the one I spent the most time on. Wow. I have to say that from my perspective as a Christian, it was truly a story of mystery and a great novel, and that was it. I was actually impressed with Brown's ability to align all the details the way he did to make such a great story, although I didn't feel "swayed" at all by the religious theories in it.

But, as I finished it, I did feel overwhelmed with concern for those non-Christians who read this with no faith base from which to judge what they learn in this book. I can see why others could be very easily swayed into thinking negatively about the church, as well as influenced to believe a completely different "story of Christ" than we do. As I finished reading it on the plane, an interesting thing happened.

A guy sitting next to us, handed me a book written in response to the DaVinci Code by Josh MacDowell. He said he had picked it up somewhere and that I could keep it and read it when I finished the book. I did read this response (called A Quest for Answers: The DaVinci Code) and was VERY glad to see that Christian authors are defending our faith and our history in books like these. MacDowell refutes many of the "facts" that Dan Brown claims as truth and makes a case for the origin of Christianity.

After I read it, I felt much more encouraged that books like this exist, and was interested in why the guy handed it to me. I told him I was a Christian and was reading The DaVinci Code out of curiousity about the book and that I enjoyed what Josh MacDowell had to say in response. I offered him his book back. He said "No, keep it and pass it on to someone who needs it." I thought it was very interesting, and a great example of someone who was prepared to offer anyone he saw reading DaVinci Code a Christian response. When he handed it to me, he didn't know my background or my reason for reading. He just knew that he had a responsibility to offer me the truth. I was impressed. And, for anyone who is curious, I now have this book as a reference.

So, along with some deep reading, I also made time for mindless magazines, a few short stories, and lots of naps in between. It's been a long time since I did truly "nothing" on a vacation. So, this was a great no-agenda trip for all of us. And, it's always great to be back home as the four of us again, catching up on what has happened while we were gone!