COUNTING DOWN THE DAYS UNTIL WE SAIL AWAY

MySpace-Countdown-Clocks

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS WEATHER FORECAST

Sitting here in the lobby of the Marriott, waiting patiently for our turn to be bussed out to the boat in an hour, I googled "Hawaiian Islands Weather Forecast" and came up with a pretty good site for checking the weather on the various islands so thought I'd post it here for anyone who might be interested:

http://www.hawaiiweathertoday.com/

GOOD MORNING FROM LA~~ Sunday, 2/28/10

We had a GREAT night's sleep in spite of listening to Geraldo talk for an hour last night about earthquakes and what a BIG ONE would do in LA. I figured I'd dream the hotel was shaking and that I'd have a sleepless night, but that didn't happen. I guess I was exhausted from our long day of travel and the Lord blessed me with a wonderful night's sleep.... the best I've had in quite a while actually. His blessings are amazing!!!

We are at breakfast and enjoying the FREE WiFi in the hotel restaurant as they charge $12.50/day in the room for it. I can make good use of the free WiFi in the restaurant as well as in the lobby and save that $12.95 to go toward souvenirs.

We are missing being in church on this Lord's Day so are grateful that we can have our time in God's Word and worship Him in our hearts no matter where we are.

We are set to board the bus at 12:15 to be driven out to the ship. Looking forward to boarding but know that the internet time will be limited as it costs so much there. I'll try to update once a day on the blog (www.ourhawaiiancruise2010.blogspot.com) but probably won't get on FB every day as it would be oh so tempting to spend HOURS catching up on news from home. That will have to wait until we hit Hilo on Friday and look for some place with free WiFi.

Thanks for caring and for praying for us throughout our trip if the Lord bring us to your mind. Blessings!

GOOD FLIGHT OUT TO LA ... Saturday, 2/27

Picture out of our plane window of the snow-covered mountains as we were flying out of Denver at noon:



11:00 a.m. Denver Time… We have arrived from Huntsville to a beautiful day in Denver, CO. The snow-covered mountains coming in were gorgeous. There is very little snow on the ground which surprised us. Richard is getting us a sandwich for lunch as we have a 90-minute lay-over here (we ate up quite a few minutes getting to our B53 gate (sounds like a bingo number) so the time will fly by and we’ll be boarding for LA before we know it. The first flight was only about half filled but by the looks of the number of folks in this gate for LA, we might have a fuller plane. It’s all good! God is GREAT. Love to all.

2:20 p.m. PST…. We flew into LA with no problems. The PRINCESS folks met us there to get our luggage and transport us to the Mariott for tonight. It’s a big hotel teeming with lots of folks. We have met several others who are going on the cruise: a couple from Iowa who are celebrating their 60th anniversary, a couple from Illinois, and a couple of ladies from Oklahoma. We are waiting a few minutes as they finish preparations in our room and then will go up and get settled for the evening. Oh…. It is raining and chilly here in LA. Yesterday was sunny and in the high 70’s. We had heard the forecast for LA rain on Friday so aren’t surprised. The clouds did make for some “fun” bumps as we flew through the clouds coming in. I thought I was back on a ride at Disney World!

SPECIAL NOTE: When we arrived in LA, we began getting messages that folks back home were concerned about us being affected by the Tsunami that might affect Hawaii. We aren't on the boat yet (board Sunday at 1:30) but please know that IF a tsunami were to occur in the ocean, a cruise ship would be the safest place to be. We are fine... looking forward to our 2-week cruise.... won't arrive in Hawaii until Friday... and are SINCERELY TOUCHED by the concern that so many expressed regarding our well-being. We are fine.... and praying for those folks in Chile who were affected by the earthquake and for those who were affected by the tsunami on some islands out in the Pacific. May God comfort those who have lost their homes, businesses, and especially those who have lost loved ones and friends.

FLYING OUT ~~ Saturday, Feb 27

Chip brought us to the airport in Huntsville to catch our flight out to LA. We have just had breakfast in the airport (McAlister's) and are about to go to our gate to be ready to board in a minute. We would appreciate prayer for a safe flight to Denver and then on to LA. We were saddened to learn of the earthquake in Chile and are praying for those affected there. And we know there is a tsunami warning for Hawaii so are praying that doesn't occur.

We are praying for our family and friends back home~~ love and miss you all. Gotta get to our gate now as we board in a few minutes. Have a blessed day, everyone. We'll be back on to update when we get to LA, the Lord willing!

OUR TRIP HAS BEGUN: Wednesday 2/24/20

We woke up to a COLD morning on Wednesday, February 24. We got the rest of our leaving-home-for-nearly-3-weeks chores done, Richard packed the car, and at 9:20 we were backing out of our garage and coasting down the driveway. HOORAY!!

DIGRESSING…Amy and the grandkids came over to tell us “bye.” Oh how I love them and it was difficult not to cry knowing we would be apart for so long. (I am a spoiled grandma~~ I admit it!) Our son-in-law Brian was still in Knoxville at the hospital with their son Jarrett (our grandson!) who had suffered a broken femur on Saturday and had had surgery on Sunday to put the rod in. Being so very concerned about Jarrett’s fever (which is why he was still hospitalized) and not knowing when he would be discharged and he and Brian would return home to Amy and the children caused a bit of extra angst in my heart as we were saying good-bye to Amy, Isabella, Josh, and Jaden. But we hugged and kissed Amy and our grandkids good-bye before they took off for school, and we finished getting ready for departure.

Once in the car and headed up the road toward Huntsville, AL to spend a couple of days with our son Chip, Richard started playing the Psalms which we have been reading this year. During that reading and with my heart focused on the Lord, HE spoke in His unmistaken way, communicating to me that HE is in control and I am not. Jarrett’s health is under HIS control. Amy having to leave town to attend special meetings is under HIS control. Brian not being home to see her before she left is under HIS control. The care of the grandkids during this time is under HIS control. (Josh so poignantly told me a couple of days earlier when I was “stewing” about Richard and me leaving town while so much was up in the air, “Grandma, we DO have our other set of grandparents here in town.” Oh, out of the mouth of a 10-year-old babe. He wasn’t sweating all of the “small stuff,” (so huge in my mind). YES, God told me loud and clear that HE is in control and not mt. I had to shed a few tears of repentance and humbleness as the Lord lovingly took me to task as He so often has to do with me, His child. I am so thankful for my Faithful Heavenly Father, for my daughter whose faith in God seems to so very often dwarf mine, for my grandkids who are all four born-again and growing in the Lord, for my son-in-law whohas stood by his son spending four days in an out-of-town hospital when “sitting and waiting” is so difficult for him, and for my husband Richard who makes decisions for the two of us with much prayer and wisdom from the Lord. And now I am on the road to go visit our son in North Alabama, fly out from there on Saturday to LA, and catch a cruise on Sunday to Hawaii. WHEW!

10:45 a.m. We made our first stop to have a late breakfast at a “hole-in-the-wall” café. We enjoyed our omelets (mine with egg whites and half the cheese: trying to stay healthy!). It was raining and 42 degrees. 80 degrees in Hawaii is sounding mighy good as we have had a much colder-and-longer winter in our neck of the woods. We were back on the road at 11:15.

12:15 a.m. Pit Stop at Priester's. Too much coffee at breakfast necessitated this stop for me. HA! When we came out just 20 minutes later (I had to shop around in Priester’s for a few minutes), the rain had stopped and the sun was breaking through as the sky was clearing. Still cold at 43 degrees.

2:30 p.m. Good news from Knoxville. Our son-in-law Brian called to let us know that Jarrett had just been discharged (3:30 their time) and that they were outta there and headed home. We praised the Lord for that great news. My grandkids’ other grandma (she is a dear friend of mine in addition to being co-grandma to our grandkids) had picked up Belle, Josh and Jaden from school at their early 1:00 p.m. dismissal so I knew the kids were in her loving hands and now with Brian headed home, the Lord had worked it all out. Jarrett's fever apparently wasn't caused by anything terribly serious and he was coming home. Without any help from me. Controller? Wanna-Be Fixer? Yep, that’s me. God showed me on this day that I can relax if I will only rely on Him. At age 58-½, am I going to fully learn that lesson this time? I pray so!! “Let go and let God!”

3:30 p.m. My sister Nonie just called. She and Tom were on a trip down to our neck-of-the-woods and had called to see if they could come by. Here we were headed to their neck of the woods and they weren’t going to be home either. We made a plan to try to get together for a meal when we fly back into Huntsville on Sunday, 3/14~~ to meet for lunch on Monday before Richard and I head home. It has been over a year since we’ve been together so my heart sings as I look forward to seeing Tom and Nonie in a little over two weeks!

4:40 p.m. We are arriving in Chip’s town when Richard has the grand idea of going by the airport to weigh our packed bags. We each have the maximum size suitcase to be checked as well as a carry-on each. Packing for the two-week cruise, we want to make sure we haven’t exceeded the 50# limit on our big bags to be checked. He comes back out letting me know we did good: each bag was just under 39 lbs. In my woman’s mind, that instantly means we have “lots of room” for plenty of souvenirs. LOL!!

5:20 We pull up at Chip’s house. Of course, we already knew he is at the church getting ready for the Student Worship Service at 6:30. We let ourselves in, get our stuff in, freshen up, relax for a few minutes and then drive over to Capshaw for Wednesday night worship which was FANTASTIC. What a joy to see our Student Pastor Son leading his 100+ students in their quest to know God.

After church, Chip and some 80 others (mostly teenagers!) went out for their customary Mexican dinner. Chip actually had brought in a special surprise guest for the service who is also spending the night here at his home. When Chip and George got back from the restaurant at 10:30, the four of us sat and talked until midnight and then retired for the night.

The first day of our trip was a great one. I love riding along as Richard drives enjoying the togetherness we both enjoy, hearing from my Lord, and seeing our son. Sweet Dreams!

TESTING. TESTING

Testing. Testing. One. Two. Three. This is a test and only a test. Do not attempt to adjust your monitor.

Our internet time will be limited on the ship. Not because we will be that busy, but because of what it costs to use their internet service. $$$$$$ Due to that not-so-little fact, I am going to pre-type my blog entry and then quickly upload it to the blog in the ship’s internet center. (Normally, I log into my blog, type on the page, thinking as I write, searching for the right word, double-checking spelling and grammar (and still making PLENTY of errors!), until when finally, I am somewhat satisfied with what I have written and hit the POST button. While sailing on the deep blue PACIFIC for 4 days and 5 nights, going and then again 4 days and 5 nights returning, I won’t have that luxury (due to prohibitive costs as mentioned above). On this Netbook (my “Nettie” as I call her), I am using the Microsoft Word Processor right now for the first time. I am typing this to see if it will upload okay into my blogspot.com blog. This way, I have time to think, compose, muse, write, re-write, check spelling and grammar, add pictures, before I log into the blog and do an upload. So……

Testing. Testing. One. Two. Three. This is a test and only a test. Do not attempt to adjust your monitor.


NOTE: I won’t have this constraint when we are on the different Hawaiian islands for those 4 days in the smack dab middle of our cruise. Being American cities, we are counting on being able to find WiFi in eateries, coffee shops, etc. You can’t keep a good blogger down!!

Over and out.

Mission Accomplished? If this post appears, it worked!!!!!!!!!!

GETTING THINGS IN ORDER

This time next Wednesday, we should be arrived at Chip's, back at his home after hearing his preach, and getting ready for bed! Going to see Chip for a couple of days is the first leg of our big trip. We enjoy going up to hear our son preach in his Wednesday night student service where he is now preaching in the book of Esther. We are able to keep up week-by-week via his ministry blog and his sermons posted there, but it is always a blessing to hear Chip preach in person, and we look forward to that blessing on the 24th.

There is one caveat to my growing excitement about our trip: I really will miss home. Not our house (bricks, walls, windows, yard, etc) but home: the people who make this place our home. The number one folks I'll miss while cruising for 14 days are my kids: Chip as well as Brian, Amy, and our grandkids. We don't see Brian, Amy, and the kids THAT often during a week's time but we know they are there... doing okay... and knowing we are here to be a help in any way which might arise... well, that is our heart's joy. I'll miss them!!!

Also, we'll miss our church and our friends. We won't be able to attend OUR church for the three Sundays we will be away. We know we can worship God together just the two of us, but we love our church and our friends. We will miss the preaching, the singing, and the fellowship. Maybe we can find some BELIEVERS on the ship and have a worship service with them. Otherwise, we pray that the Lord will use us as missionaries on this trip and will give us opportunities to share the GOSPEL with others.

We spent today, one week from leaving, getting our trip clothes together. Some needed mending. Check! Some needed washing. Check! Some needed ironing (yes, I have to pack them ironed... dumb, I know!) Check! How are we able to start packing this early? It's summer clothes that will be needed in Hawaii and believe you me, we are still wearing our warm winter duds here. Nope, we aren't sweating the packing thing. "WE" have learned on our previous cruises that "I" take at least twice too many clothes; so this time, I really am cutting way back. It's a 14-night cruise BUT we will have a full laundromat down the hall from our stateroom. We can wash if we need to. Flying dictates that we can't take everything but the kitchen sink. I will do fine with less. Here is what I have washed, ironed, and folded to take. (NOTE: I have to add my formal clothes for the formal dinners, 3 skirts and tops, plus a two-piece dress. These are not pictured here.)



We have purchased our prescription meds, OTC meds, and DRAMAMINE for the trip. I still have a few toiletries to pick up and then we're done BUYING. We are really getting everything in good order.... (We even have a will in the making~~ just in case!)

Now it's just my heart that I have to get in order. The fact of leaving loved ones behind. How I wish that Amy and her family, Chip, our siblings and in-laws, and so many dear friends could be going, too. But you know... even us retired folks need a "get-away" for just the two of us. Richard and I look forward to sharing this experience together. Making another memory to cherish. The Lord will see after my loved ones... which is truly what He does every day anyway....

The 2-1/2 weeks will fly by and we'll be back home before I know it!!