a few thoughts so far...

1. I arrived around lunch yesterday. We ate at a very fancy restaurant and I felt totally out of place. :) I encouraged Jody's 2 youngest boys to "scare" her as she came out of the bathroom...which was a really fun idea. Problem was that instead of Jody coming out the restroom door, it was an older lady. She did not find it as funny as Quincy, Zeke and myself did. Oops.

2. We sat outside on the porch all afternoon. It was so so gorgeous. Drank coffee. Talked. Worked on our computers. Colored with the children. Got all caught up on lots of things. Good for the soul.

3. Jody has an amazing aunt Deborah who made chili and delivered it to us. We ate together and chatted for a long time. I love her. So enjoy her company.

4. Church. Well...I'm not really sure what to write about this. I feel as though it deserves a whole post of it's own. Or at least several bullet points of it's own. I will say this:
a) their church is awesome.
b) at Andy's very first strum of the guitar, the floodgates opened. not kidding. like horrible, ugly crying. man, do i miss worshiping under him.
c) i feel so sad for all those who love the Landers and were witness to their very ugly, VERY public downfall but who cannot be witness to GOD'S HEALING POWER in their lives in person. they are so much healthier on so many levels. it's great to see. and healing for myself as well. i wish i could express how important i feel "the rest of the story" is here. HEALING. RESTORATION. GRACE. wow. that may have played a huge part in the embarrassing tears that did not stop flowing for over an hour. i feel very strongly that that's the story that needs to be told. and the piece of the puzzle that so many of us are missing out on. through the pain and the sin and the brokeness, a new life has emerged. exciting for them. so happy for them. so thankful for the staff at this church and how they have chosen to love the Landers. This side of the story is where God gets to be revealed. Very awesome.

5. I have been able to meet several of the people in their community here. And I'm so thankful for these people who have been dignity restorers for the Landers. They have been sensitive to their needs. And their healing has happened through this sensitivity and grace.

6. Lunch at Red Robin in Colorado is VERY different from lunch at Red Robin in Davenport. (See the twitpic along the sidebar to find out why!)

7. Only at the Landers house would 6 children come running up the stairs screaming "MOOOOOMMMM!!!! There's a cat in the basement!" And really have a cat down there. No, they do not own a cat. I couldn't stop laughing about this.

8. Saw "Life as we know it" tonight. It was a good movie!! Really loved it. And gosh, I even cried again a couple time.

9. Big discussion tonight in the Landers living room on theology. Now I know nothing. But I love to listen and put in my ignorant 2 cents worth. And I'm thankful for these two who don't make me feel like an idiot when I do. It was a heated debate and I'm kind of surprised no children awoke!

10. Finally, you should know I have a headache tonight. Not sure if it was the crying, the mental breakdown in church, the crying at the movie, the beer with dinner or the heated discussion after dinner. I'm thinking it might be a little bit of all of those things. One thing I know is true...I love them. And big things are happening her in Colorado Springs for them. And I'm thankful. (ok...so that's 3 things i know are true.)

goodnight...