Sequoia National Park – perhaps see it on the way back!  I wonder how much that sign costs.

Sharing ice cream with our oldest child Melissa back in Upland on the way back through So Cal, who we will miss, but will be coming with her husband to visit us along the way.

Girls first public singing performance since choir – on the Colorado River…Karaoke style!

Okay, I admit, this part does look more like a vacation!  However, it was a new experience for them!  On the river.

Parker Dam – they wouldn’t let us drive over.  Had to go the long way around heading to Grand Canyon. Said our house on wheels was too big!

All four are Grand Canyon pics…held that kiss for awhile!

Bedrock City!

Beautiful Sedona Az!

Church of the Holy Cross – built in stone in Sedona Az.

Habitat for Humanity charity event.

Our family friends, the Davis family outside of Phoenix!

Chuck Sr.

October was good, we had a chance to reconnect and say good bye to some friends, and then REALLY head out for adventures and experiences unknown.  Gia is right below, I do not like driving this huge fifth wheel at night on desolate two lane roads with no light!  However, we made it, got unloaded and ordered pizza!  It was a great park – on the Colorado River. It was also a great opportunity to get in the groove of one of our more structured ministry and witnessing opportunities.

The Grand Canyon was humbling and because the temps were in the 20’s at night, I learned more about how to best manage life in a RV on the road!  Moving every few days can be very contrasting, and interesting to experience!  We went from jet skiing in bathing suits to 20 degree temps in just a couple of days.  Dropping down to Cottonwood after the Grand Canyon was great.  The highlight for me there was serving Habitat for Humanity.  It was just a booth, but we were like salespeople for a few hours.  So rewarding the conversation was that we had with the people of the area and the unselfish people who signed up to help future projects.  Selling is not really my comfort zone, but after I got over myself, it worked out well.  The children were so good at it and I was the closer!  :-).

Our devotion time to God was starting to take more shape and have increasing impact. Individual and family personal devotion time reading and understanding the bible that wasn’t as rushed, commitments made to grow and the opportunity to follow through (not that we always did), and less distractions pulling away from that.  This month we also started a structured family devotion – every time we traveled to a new location.  Using the Purpose Driven Life from Rick Warren as our structure.  Something Gia and I started years ago, but didn’t make it past two weeks back in our life then.  All of this time with God was very convicting to me personally, highlighting areas in which I could grow.

As we traveled through Arizona spending time with our special friends Emory and his wife Lelia was a special life long memory.  They are doing such amazing work there, as they have their entire life.  God has blessed me with so many good people in my life to learn from.  Later in the month we we were able to connect with my only sibling – my brother Bill who came out unplanned and spent a weekend with us.  It was so good to see him.  Other then that, we saw some cool stuff and I continued to learn how little I have known about MANY things, and we continue on our Jesus journey.  Connect with you soon!

Gia

After getting some things repaired by the hard working guys at Giant RV in Montclair, we left for the Colorado River. Chuck was worried about traveling in the middle of the night, but we just wanted to be at where we were going. While traveling at night on a road under a full moon, everyone else had fallen asleep except for the three of us (Chuck, FaithJean , and I).  We were making up silly stories (something I inherited from my dad) about a “Tarantula Hill”.  We saw some wild Burros on the way to Emerald Cove. Or did we? The adventures of traveling from one place to another at night can be the cause of some craziness, including crankiness. Chuck and I made a vow after that we would do most of our traveling during the day and only travel about 4-6 hours at a time!

While enjoying the Colorado River, we experienced some new adventures including jet skiing with our kids for the first time. Another adventure was walking around the RV park to get to know others, be friendly. While doing this, we asked if we could pray for them. Most people were receptive and I think appreciated it. I also started a Ministry Journal. Grace also came up with the idea to make “encouragement strips” with Bible verses written on them with lots of pretty colors. We felt that we could hand them out to people wherever we went. We also drove to Parker, Arizona on the other side of the river to buy some needed supplies. I needed some board-shorts and while I was in there I got to know a single dad and was able to encourage and counsel him about his teenage daughter. You never know who God is going to put into your path for you to encourage.

The rest of the month of October we traveled all over Arizona. For the majestic, everybody should at least once visit the Grand Canyon where we saw an endangered California Condor and also the beautiful red rock town of Sedona. It is in the Verde Valley that we met a wonderful women named Lori that helped us to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity. She was an inspiration to our family in what she does with so many volunteers to help make dreams come true for hard working families that just need help up, not a hand out (her saying). Before leaving the area of Cottonwood/Sedona for Phoenix, we met so many wonderful believers that also helped us with some problems we had been having with our RV. We also sang karaoke as a family for the first time!  Often at night I would go outside and gaze at the stars having some quiet time with God. Chuck and I would pray outside together while admiring the stars as we used to do in Cali.

Next stop would be Phoenix, Arizona to visit with some dear friends of ours (Pastor Emory, and his lovely wife Leila). Pastor Emory was our pastor at Sunrise Church in Rialto before he moved to Phoenix. He had also ministered the renewal of our wedding vows ten years ago and later gave the blessing of our children being dedicated to the Lord. Chuck and I was able to partake in bible studies at their church called “Impact” in Scottsdale, Arizona. We all spent part of Halloween together at a Harvest Festival at another church, and then went trick or treating in a neighborhood close by.

FaithJean

One of the most amazing creations I’ve seen on this trip is the truly “Grand” Canyon. The first time I saw the Grand Canyon was at night, and when I looked down, my heart skipped a beat! I was in awe of how big and deep it was. God definitely created that amazing canyon! After the Grand Canyon, we went to Cottonwood and Sedona, Arizona.

At Sedona, we volunteered with Habitat for Humanity in Cottonwood, and also met some very nice people there. It was an awesome experience volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, and we met an awesome, and hard-working lady named Lori Reed. After Sedona and Cottonwood, we went to Phoenix. In Phoenix, we met up with our great family friends, the Davis couple. It was really nice to see them and their church. Also in Phoenix, we had Halloween. I ate my candy pretty fast. It was nice having Halloween in Phoenix.

Grace

After Pomona we went to Emerald Cove, which is in Arizona, but it is on the border of California.  We are in Arizona!  In Emerald Cove, we went jet skiing, I was scared, but I got used to it.  We also celebrated Hope and my b-day again!  We made a lot of stuff there, it was fun.  Next we went to the Grand Canyon!  It was big, it made me feel small and my worries seem small, it was many miles long!  It was amazing!  The next thing that I liked to do or go to was Phoenix!  We did Halloween there with our friends, our former Pastor and his wife.  We were in a dog parade with Angel, it was cute.

Hope

Dear Friends and family,

We are back where we started. We came back to get things worked on the R.V. When we came back it was around the time of our birthday, so we got to celebrate it with family, which was great. Then we went to Earp, California. We were technically still in California. The other side was Arizona you had to cross the Colorado River to get over there. We got go jet skiing on the Colorado River, it was awesome, when we were returning them my Daddy, my brother, and I fell in the water. I fell in the Colorado River! After that we went to Grand Canyon National Park. The Grand Canyon is so beautiful. God is amazing! On our way to our next stop! We stopped at Flinstone Park! That was fun! I kept on getting stickers on my foot!

When we were in our next stop, we did our first big volunteering opportunity. It was fun! We did a lot of sightseeing there! We then were in Phoenix, Arizona! We were in a big city again! When we were there we got to see friends, the Davis family. We went to their church. Their church is a cool church. We also got to spend Halloween with them!

I dressed up as a batgirl. I also got a lot of Candy! It was cool to be in a different place for Halloween! I miss all of you! Time goes by fast.

With Love, Hope

Chuck Jr.

First, was Earp, a small little town and it was right on the Colorado river and right next to Arizona!  Second, was the Grand Canyon, the Grand Canyon was pretty. Third was Cottonwood, it was nice and we got to go to church in the RV park! Fourth, was Phoenix and I liked spending time Emory and his wife Lelia.  Fifth, was New Mexico and I liked the restaurant with a talking bird! Sixth was another stop to New Mexico where I liked the Carlsbad Caverns because they were so big!