First Soccer Game

I tried to post this blog on Saturday, but I had trouble opening my blog all weekend. Fortunately this morning I remembered a different way to gain access and here I am, back with my blog and notes from Jon. Welcome to those of you who have only read Jon's blog. You will find a completely different writing style, shorter blogs and more pictures. Enjoy! :)

Saturday Joshua had his first soccer game as a member of a U8 (under 8 years old) team. He is on the Might Tigers team and he got to play goalie for part of one quarter. He loved it. After two years in the U6 (under 6 years old) league, he seems to be getting the whole concept of soccer. It was fun to for me to watch him -- he runs around the field with a smile on his face.

For those of you waiting for the pictures from Yosemite portion of our August trip (I'm sure that hundreds of you) :) -- they are coming.

Sheryl

Prayers are Being Answered

I’d like to thank everyone for their prayers regarding the potentially damaging issue I mentioned the other day. There may be a few vessels off course, but after a couple of key meetings with the right people, I believe the flotilla that ventured forth some time ago is back on track. Keep praying, we need to insure those few remaining ships get back with the flotilla—thanks, and I’ll keep you updated as I learn more.

I’m not sure, at this point, how I’ll be able to field any comments you post to Sheryl’s blog (it’s the same blogging network as mine, so if you created a profile to post to my blog, you’re good to go to post to Sheryl’s blog), hopefully between the two of us we’ll figure out some way to respond if you take the time to sound off.

Semper Fi, Jon G.

Part Two of the Train Trip

After two great days in the Bay Area we headed to Sacramento Friday (9/25) evening. That was a fun train ride from Emeryville (near Berkley) along the eastern coast of the Bay and then east to Sacramento. We arrived at 9:00 p.m. and were met by Jon's Aunt Lori.

Our time in Sacramento was much warmer than the Bay Area, but since Lori had a pool, we were able to stay cool. We enjoyed touring the great train museum in Old Sacramento. After viewing many trains we walked a few steps to the bank of the Sacramento River where we watched a bridge turn 90 degrees to let a boat go down the river.

Monday (9/28) morning Lori took us to the Amtrak station where we caught our first bus (Amtrak connection) to Stockton. Joshua rested on our luggage while we waited about 30 minutes at the Stockton train station for our train. We were only on the train for 30 minutes before getting off in Modesto and hopping on our second bus which took us to Yosemite in about 2 hours. It was our first time to enter the valley through that route and it was a nice change of pace.

The next entry will be the Yosemite pictures.

Sheryl

First Day of School

Just took Joshua to his first day of 1st grade. It was a very different experience from last year. He already knows at least 1/3 of the kids in his class as well as his teacher. Sra. Hamidi was his English teacher last year. She is now teaching 1st grade Two-Way Immersion. I had a great time seeing the parents of Joshua's friends who are my friends as well. It was a fun morning. Joshua barely waved good bye to me as he walked to his class. Ah, he is growing up.

Now to all my projects that have been on hold during my busy summer.

More pictures from our trip to come next time.

Sheryl

First Part of Our Trip

Joshua and I had a great time on our train ride up the coast on Wednesday, August 23rd. We left San Juan Capistrano on a chilly morning at 7:30 a.m. and didn't get into San Jose until 9:00 p.m., but it was a lot of fun. We read, Joshua listened to a Harry Potter CD, we took walks around the train, ate in the dining car and found ways to entertain ourselves. My favorite part of the trip were the hours we drove along the coast. Joshua and I sat with our noses pressed against the window staring out at the beaches. It was awesome.

Our time in the Bay Area with my Aunt Judy was fun as well. We enjoyed a day at a children's museum at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge. On our second day we made the drive out to the Jelly Belly Factory. That was a great tour and of course we loved the free samples.

Friday evening my aunt dropped us off at the train station in Emeryville (near Oakland) and we enjoyed a 2 hours train ride to Sacramento. The conductors enjoyed asking Joshua for Jelly Bellys since he was still wearing his hat from the tour.

Pictures from our time in Sacramento and the Yosemite trip will follow in the next post.

Sheryl

Home after a long day of travel

Just a short note to let y'all know that Joshua and I arrived home earlier than expected -- 9:30 p.m. into San Juan Capistrano train station. We left Yosemite at 10:00 a.m. this morning, so it was a long day. We started with the Yosemite Shuttle for 30 minutes then a small bus for 2 hours and 15 minutes to Merced. Then we boarded Amtrak for a 3 hour train trip to Bakersfield. From there we got on a big bus with little leg room for a 2 hour ride to LA Union Station. Had an hour+ wait there and ended with an hour and half train trip home. Thanks to Pam and Cory for leaving our car in the train parking lot so I could drive the final leg of the journey. Ah, I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed. Now if only the sensation of being on a train would stop.

Pictures and stories from our trip will follow.

Sheryl

Many Awesome Adventures

Joshua and I are having a great time. We left the San Juan train station at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday (Thanks, Debbie, for the ride to the train station) and arrived in San Jose around 9:00 p.m. It was a long day, but such a fun trip. The commuter train to LA seemed to fly. It was fun to go through many stations that we have visited before -- Santa Ana, Anaheim, Orange, Fullerton.

We had an easy connection at LA Union. Our Starlight Train was waiting for us. We were given seat assignments and had a great time getting settled in to our seats, which were huge. Joshua listened to a Harry Potter CD while I wrote Jon a long letter and read some magazines. We spent hours staring out at the ocean between Oxnard and San Luis Obispo -- gorgeous. We took many tours of the rest of the train. He even had an over-priced dinner in the dining car, but that was fun too.

Our two days in the Bay Area were just as exciting. We visited a children's museum just across the Golden Gate in a fort at the foot of the bridge on the Marine County side. We had visited this place before and once again Joshua spent hours building, creating and playing. Today we took a long drive out to the Jelly Belly Factory -- very fun and worth the drive. The weather was a nice a cool in the Bay Area.

Tonight (Friday) we caught the train out of Emeryville (near Oakland) a little after 7:00 p.m. and arrived in Sacramento a little after 9:00. We will be visiting Jon's Aunt Lori for two days. Here we will warm up with 90 degree weather, but Lori has a pool and we have fun activities planned for our time here as well.

We head to Yosemite on Monday for 3 days, so I won't be posting again till we get home. Thanks for your prayers during our little adventure. It is good to be away from home and the many reminders of Jon.

All for now.

Sheryl

Finally a call

After waiting all day, I finally got a call from Jon around 10:30 Tuesday night. He was still in our hemisphere but headed east. In about 17 hours he will arrive in the time zone that is 11 hours ahead of ours. From there it will still probably be a few days before he reaches his final destination.

Jon was upgraded to first class on the flight from Orange County to Dallas, which was a huge blessing because he was able to stretch out. He slept the whole way. The flight attendant told him at the end of the flight that she was all ready to pamper him, but he just fell asleep. Well, that is what he needed after getting up at 3:30 this morning.

Please pray for Jon as he returns to a difficult place with tons of work waiting for him. We both agree that this separation feels much worse than the first time. Thanks to all of you who are praying and sending encouraging e-mails. You can start sending those Motomails, letters and packages to Jon again. Thanks.

His address is:
CWO4 (until September 1) then he will be CWO5 Moran, J.G.
I MEF (G2)
UIC 42540
FPO AP 96426-2540

Sheryl

And He's Off

Joshua and I got Jon to the airport at 5:30 this morning. We went in and hung out with him while he checked in. Then it was time for good bye. This time seemed much more difficult and emotional for me. I guess it's because I know what I'm getting into. :( A couple people greeted Jon in the airport and thanked him for his service. We saw Jon escorted to the front of the security line and then we left. Jon is flying to Dallas this morning, but he won't know the rest of his flight schedule until he gets there. Hopefully I'll get a call later today.

Joshua and I have a busy day ourselves and then we are off on our own adventure tomorrow morning. Thanks for your prayers.

Sheryl

Final Weekend

We had a wonderful weekend. After church on Sunday the three of us drove down to the San Diego Zoo. We enjoyed visiting our favorite animals on a beautiful afternoon and evening. We gave Jon a birthday present of matching shirts of his choice. He loves for all of us to wear matching clothes so we spent the day being triplets.

After an evening at a San Diego hotel we spent Monday morning touring the USS Midway. Joshua toured the ship months ago with some Dads and kids from our church, but Jon and I had never toured the ship. It was fun to see it together and to have Joshua lead us through various parts of the ship he remembered from his previous visit.

Now we need to pack and say our final farewells. All for a while.

Sheryl

Sensational San Juan Seniors

Friday Joshua, Jon and I were invited to join the San Juan Seniors for a their Luau. We have been so honored to be adopted by this generous group and it was wonderful for Jon to meet them. We enjoyed our time eating a delicious lunch, listening to Hawaiian music performed by a San Clemente Seniors group and chatting with our new friends. Here we are with some of the 100 in attendance. What a blessing these folks are to all of us.

This weekend Jon, Joshua and I will be headed to San Diego to enjoy the Zoo, spend the night in a hotel and then maybe tour a ship or visit the Wild Animal Park. We'll get home in time Monday to pack and then Jon will be off on Tuesday morning at the crack of dawn.

Sheryl

Happy Birthday, Jon

Today is Jon's 45th birthday. He beat me to this age by 2 months. We have enjoyed celebrating his birthday ever since he got home. Last Saturday my family came over for a little party. Last night we enjoyed dinner with good friends (see picture) to celebrate Jon again. Tonight Jon and I will have dinner out with a special date night.

We're getting prepared for Jon's departure which will be early Tuesday morning the 22nd. Thanks for praying for us.

Sheryl

Having Fun

As you can imagine, we are having a lot of fun together as a family. Monday we found a great trail in Laguna Niguel that goes down about 800 feet from a bluff with million dollar homes on it to South Laguna, which is on the beach. It was a steep hike, but fun to be together. Here we are at the top of the bluff, before the hike. We were much hotter and a bit scraped up afterwards, but still smiling. Tuesday Jon had some business to do at Camp Pendelton so Joshua and I enjoyed the beach just off the Oceanside Harbor. Today we head up to Porterville and my uncle's farm for a few days in the country.

All for now.

Sheryl for J & J

He's Home!

Almost home

I posted on Jon's blog that he called Friday night and I have his flight information. He'll have to hang out in Dallas for a number of hours, but he has a number of things he has to do to re-enter the country, so the time may get used up. Can hardly wait to see him Sunday afternoon.

Sheryl

R&R getting closer

Jon and I have sent our last e-mails until we see each other. I am anticipating a phone call Friday evening to let me know when he will arrive home. Not sure if he will be traveling military transport or commercial airlines but tomorrow night I should know more.

Joshua and I have been having fun this week to keep us from sitting around counting down the minutes. We had a pool playdate with school friends -- it was great to be with Noah and Alex, their sisters Lucy, Ruby and Audrey as well as their great moms -- Melissa and Rhonda. It reminded me of what a fun time Joshua and I both have during the school year.

Tuesday Joshua and I spent most of the day doing a 550 piece puzzle. Then in the middle of the afternoon when we needed a break we decided to go to the San Diego Zoo. It was the perfect time to go down there without getting stuck in traffic. The zoo is open till 9:00 p.m. in the summer and it is always fun to see the big cats awake and prowling.

Today Joshua and I both had our first experience at the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. We went to see it at The Pond in Anaheim. We parked at the train station, to save $12, but discovered that there wasn't an easy way to The Pond even though we could see it from the train station. Then we found "the hole in the fence." Yep, we climbed through and hiked the 1/4 mile to the stadium where I broke down and spent $9 on a bag of cotton candy and a clown hat. Crazy! But Joshua and I enjoyed the show immensely.

Tomorrow we'll probably get together with some friends. Saturday Joshua will be taking a train trip to LA with another friend from school -- Alex and his dad Mr. Ken. They went to the Mighty Duck's game back in March and this should be a fun excursion. I have plans to meet friends for breakfast and get my nails done. I'll need to do laundry and clean the house at some point as well.

Hopefully Sunday will be our reunion day. We'll see and we'll keep you posted. Can you tell that I am grinning from ear to ear? :)

Sheryl

The Waiting Begins

Had a call from Jon this morning, since Sunday I was busy with the Y Malawi Steering Team. It was great to hear his voice, especially since I anticipate having his voice connected to his whole body next week. So the waiting begins. Still a few days till he leaves his current location and then it will be a few days before he can call and let me know when he will be arriving in my location. Got it? :) Don't want anyone trying to hinder this trip. But, Lord willing, by next week at this time our family of three will all be together.

The weekend was very productive for our Y Malawi team. We are getting more organized and I always appreciate time with this great team of folks who come from numerous churches. Our meetings were from Saturday lunch through Sunday evening this time and so the team joined me at the 8:00 a.m. service at San Clemente Presbyterian. It was wonderful to worship with our Y Malawi partners at my church. The meetings also went well because I had four women who volunteered to help serve and clean up our meals. Thank you Debbie, Lisa, Rosalis and Peggy. You were a blessing to all of us, but especially to me.

This week Joshua and I will be having play dates with friends, hanging out at home, going to the Circus (first time for Joshua) and waiting for Jon.

Sheryl

More fun this summer

We returned from our two weeks of vacation and Joshua participated in a week-long Spanish Tae Kwon Do Camp. He loved it and I was glad to have him immersed in Spanish for a week. I don't want him to forget what he learned during the school year. The kids were supposed to speak Spanish to each other as well as to the teacher, although Joshua told me the trick was to whisper. If you didn't get caught speaking English, then you didn't get a time out. The time outs involved standing outside until the next student got caught speaking English. The day Joshua got a time out he told me that he hadn't even gotten to the door yet when someone else spoke in English, so he didn't have to take a time out. :)

Last Saturday I had the opportunity to attend a Faith Academy 50th Celebration. Faith is one of the mission kid schools I attended while growing up in the Philippines. They celebrated their 50th anniversary by having small gatherings around the US and the world. We were honored to have 5 staff members who have worked at Faith over 25 years each. I connected with my 2nd grade teacher Miss Fox, who I haven't seen since 1969. I also saw my Home Ec teacher from 7th and 8th grades. No one from my class ('79) was there, but there were older friends and friends from my sisters class ('81) that I was able to reconnect with. It was awesome to hear and see what God has continued to do through that school. For more information on the school, check out their web site at http://www.faith.edu.ph/.

This week Joshua is with my brother Steve and family. Joshua is attending a sports camp with his cousin Evan and I am sure they are having a great time. When I took him down Sunday evening, I could barely get a "good bye, Mom," out of him before I left. It is such a nice gift from my sister-in-law Sandi who has three kids of her own and has to keep their house clean as they are trying to sell it. :(

I am getting various things done at home. I'm also having fun. Went to see "The Devil Wears Prada" yesterday and had a great, cool time. For those of you not in Southern California, it has been almost as hot at Iraq this past week. Our little mobile home does not have AC, so I have been finding other places to go to stay cool. Today I am meeting a friend at the Cheesecake Factory in Irvine for lunch and then a group of friends are going to Las Brisas in Laguna for dinner before viewing the Art-A-Fair.

Thursday evening I'll drive down to Escondido and meet Sandi and the kids. We'll take them to the Wild Animal Park and have a picnic dinner. It should be great to see the animals in the cool of the evening. Friday I'll get to hang out with my sister Sandy for a while as well.

The coming weekend is another Y Malawi Steering Team meeting which I am hosting at San Clemente Presbyterian. Fortunately I have a great team of volunteers helping me and plenty of time this week to prepare. I am looking forward to productive meetings.

Well, now you are caught up on Joshua and me. Of course the news that Jon will (probably) be coming home for his R&R soon, if very exciting. Although I must admit that part of me is wary -- you never know with the USMC.

Sheryl

Pictures from Franklin, Michigan

Our time in Franklin, Michigan, was very active, as you can see from these pictures. Joshua loved bouncing on the trampoline. Here he and Riley showed off for the camera. All the kids enjoyed the two days at the pool. The day at the lake was perfect. The water and the air were just the right temperature for swimming and building sand castles. Joshua got to go bowling for the first time to celebrate Baker's 10th birthday. He posed after getting his first strike! What an experience. Yes, we had an awesome time with our Moran relatives. Thanks, Greg, Sharon, Baker, Regan and Riley for your hospitality for 9 days.

Sheryl

Pictures from Lanesboro, Minnesota

Here are some shots from our excellent time in Lanesboro, Minnesota. We enjoyed our time with Ann, Bob, Nathan, Kimberly, Ethan, Karen and Mike. It was an awesome vacation. If you are ever in the south-eastern corner of Minnesota, I highly recommend the Cozy Quilt Cottage owned and operated by the Weavers. I'll have shots from our time in Michigan in a day or two.

Sheryl