we're here!

Well, two days in Dublin and we've already seen so much! We were pleasantaly suprised to have very nice weather and no rain upon arrival. In fact, its only rained on us once, and that was somewhat light. We only took one wrong street on walking from the bus stop to our hotel, and were settled by noon on Sunday. We showered and cleaned up and headed out into the city in an effort not only to stay awake, but to start our sightseeing.

We ended up at Trinity College and took a 30-minute tour, which included a viewing of the Book of Kells. If you're not sure what it is, look it up. It was quite a remarkable thing to see.

After staying up until the late hour of 7:00, we finally couldn't stay awake any longer. We fell asleep exhausted but excited. It was a good first day.

Yesterday we toured the city on a tour bus, taking the whole tour first, deciding what we wanted to go back and see. We ended up walking through both Christ Church and St. Patrick's Cathedrals. What magnificent buildings! We've decided to talk to Rick (our pastor back home) and see what he would think about flying buttresses for the new church.

We did other stuff yesterday, but mostly what I remember from the evening was searching all over for a restaurant, but finding only pubs that served only drinks, and no food. As we got hungrier and it got colder and I got crankier, we finally ended up at an Italian restaurant eating pizza. It was good, and warm, and filling. Yesterday we managed to stay awake until 9. Go us!

(Please forgive the brevity of this post, by the way. I'm on a weird keyboard and trying to go quickly to avoid crazy prices. The dollar sucks.)

Today we spent the morning doing a little shopping and then headed to the Guinness Factory. They have a great museum, showing the history of Guinness and the process of making the beer. And at the top of the museum is a viewing room, one of the highest points in Dublin. We could see miles of the city. Oh, and we were given some Guinness to try. Still don't like beer.

We the headed into the main part of the city to catch a bus that would take us out to a castle just outside the city. This was a 3-hour tour (no Gilligan on our buss), and involved lots of driving through the countryside. We saw some beautiful spots, and if we had more time in Dublin there would truly be much more to see.

Tonight we're on the hunt for a true Irish pub for dinner, perhaps some more shopping (so far we haven't bought anything), and hopefully staying up until at least 10:00 (jet lag has been hard to get over). Tomorrow we have the morning in Dublin and then we catch a flight to Oslo. Its ineresting, yesterday we went through a museum that outlined the history the Vikings have had in Dublin. Essentially, Dublin itself was settled by Vikings 1,000 years ago. It'll be interesting to head to Viking homelands tomorrow, direct from the places they once conquered.

Hopefully more to come soon!

On the plane, over Dublin. It was 10:15 a.m. here ... but our bodies were thinking it was only 2:15.

Outside the Book of Kells exhibit.

only one day left!

Well, we leave for the airport in a little more than 24 hours. We're mostly packed, except for those things that have yet to finish being washed. We've collected all our confirmation numbers and made copies of our passports and credit cards. We've paid our May bills, we've arranged for the plants to be fed and the mail to be collected. In other words ... we are SO ready to go! We're hoping to update this blog while we're gone, so check back periodically for updates as we gallavant about Europe. We'll miss you all! (Well, we'll try.)

whoa

Every now and then, as I'm going about my usual daily routine, the thought strikes me again that we leave for Europe on Saturday at 4:15. We're going to Europe for 2 1/2 weeks, and we leave on SATURDAY!! And my daily routine is interrupted with a small dance of joy and a muffled squeal. We're getting pretty excited.

Happy Birthday Alicia!

yarn mountain

Some might call this pile of yarn a ridiculous mess ... who needs that much yarn?? Well, I do! And I call this yarn mountain a mountain of possibility! Just think of the hats and sweaters and afghans and baby cardigans that are just waiting to come to life! Last night I took my yarn mountain and I cataloged and organized all of it. Now I have a much better idea of what I actually have and can start planning on how to use it all up! Its very exciting.

more knitting fun

I've been doing a lot of knitting lately ... MAD knitting, my husband might say. I'm having fun knitting up a bunch of hats I hope to wear on our upcoming trip to Europe. But its become a little bit of an obsession lately, and my desire to FINISH as many as possible has turned me a little bit ... well, crazy. However, despite its toll on my personality, I'm collecting quite a few headwarmers, and I thought I'd share some of them with you. Enjoy.

This is one I'm currently working on, and hope to have finished soon. I'm using a very lightweight yarn and a small needle, so its taking a while.

This is actually a headband-type thing. I started this mostly because I wanted to learn this technique, called entrelac, which looks really cool. But when finished, the band itself turned out to be something I think I might actually use! And the technique turned out not to be nearly as complicated as I thought it would.

Here's the finished product, on my head.

I originally started this hat for myself, but as I knitted along, following the pattern, realized it was going to be MUCH too big for me. It also started getting really long, like a pointed elf's hat, so I actually never finished the top portion, just pulled it together when I thought it was long enough and tied it off. (I found out later this is a common problem with this pattern.) It fits Caleb (though its even a little big on him), so now HE has a new hat to wear in Europe. I had hoped to make another smaller one for myself, but I don't think I'll get that in before we leave. Oh, and yes, I knitted in that pattern, using two different yarns as I knitted along. Its laborious, but it looks so cool when its done.

You might remember this hat from a while ago ... well, now I've added its much-needed embelishment, a giant flower! I think it looks much better.

Sorry for the blurry picture here. This is more of a beret-style hat, and SUPER comfy. I used a yarn with cashmere in it, and its very soft. I'll try and get a better picture of it soon, 'cause its pretty cute.

Yes, its a little long, but its a nice basic double-yarn braided cable warm hat. With a big pom pom on top! You can't go wrong when pom poms are involved.

Happy 1st Birthday Hailey!

we found it!

After much searching and only a little bit of anxiety, Amy has found her dress! We'd just been looking in the wrong stores, that's all. Last night Mom, Amy, Amy Beth, and myself met at The Dresser in downtown Fullerton for another try at finding THEE dress. And we did! It was hiding there all along. And Amy is really excited (as a bride should be when she finally finds the perfect gown). Though we took many pictures of her in her dress, I won't be sharing any of them here. Its to be a surprise not only for her future husband, but for everyone! Below are a few pictures from the whole process ....

The first dress shopping event was at David's Bridal. This is Amy, on arrival, with magazines and wedding planner in hand (or, over shoulder I should say).

Mom and Amy (in a dress she did not buy) going over some of the ideas from one of her magazines.

Mom and Amy, putting the down payment on the new dress, and exultant over one of the first big decisions nailed down.

Congratulations!

My cousin Josh and his wife Kel are on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ and live in a country far far away (the same one I used to live in, in fact). Well, yesterday they gave birth to their second child, a healthy baby boy! He's over 8 pounds, and both mom and baby are doing well. And, after months and months of discussion about names, they settled on ... Guinness Dean Elwood. Yes, like the beer. And Dean is Josh's middle name, as well as our grandpa's. Congratulations Josh and Kel, and big sister Kayla!

dress shopping

On Sunday afternoon, a few of the Lindley women gathered together for the trying-on-of-bridal-gown ritual practiced when one among us is engaged to be married. We met at Mary Lynn's Bridal Shop in Pasadena and had a grand time watching Amy try on dresses. They don't allow photos in the shop, of course, so these were all taken afterward as we sat having dessert and discussing what we liked and didn't like about the dresses she tried on, as well as all things bridal.

(Amy hasn't found "the dress" yet, and we have another appointment tonight at a shop in Fullerton. Pray with us she finds one she is completely 100% excited about AND is in the price range she's searching for. We all know how fun dress shopping is, and yet the longer you look without finding something awesome the easier it is for anxiety and frustration to set in.)

Rachel, sipping our cappuccino cake dessert.

Amy and Molly. (See post below for explanation of why this is the best picture of Amy I have for you today.)

Heidi and Joy.

Mom and Aunt Joyce.

photogenic much?

It has been a long-known fact that my dear beautiful sister starts turning weird the moment a camera is pointed at her. Its always been a source of entertainment in our family, and fortunately Amy has a pretty good attitude about it. However, she's going to put in some practice hours before her wedding, because if the pictures below are any indication of what we might get on that day ... well, you get the picture.

This was the best shot we got that day.

Happy Birthday Wendy!

(... on the day Lincoln was shot (1865) and the Titanic sank (1912))

Happy Birthday Cori!

how to look 10 years younger in 10 minutes

1. Begin with a full mountain-man beard.



2. Begin shaving ... while you listen to and try to ignore the cries of your wife screaming "Nooooo." (She happens to have loved the beard.)



3. Try the Abraham Lincoln look ... and decide it makes you look weird, or 150 years old.



4. Shave more ... somewhat painfully.



5. Shave a little more, losing all notion of full beard.



6. Try out the grunge goattee look.



7. Maybe a soul patch?



8. But ultimately, to take off the most years, all facial hair (save eyebrows) must be removed.

finally engaged

We knew it was coming, and coming soon. We've been waiting with baited breath, with hardly contained anticipation. And then it came, and there was much rejoicing and dancing and singing. Really, you should have been there. Amy and Hans, her boyfriend of more than a year, got engaged on Sunday! As the story goes, he took her to a park, sang her a song he wrote for her, then dropped on his right knee and asked the age-old question ... would she be his forever? She said yes, and so he gave her a most beautiful ring. And what has been speculation for some time has become tried-and-true fact. They're engaged! They're hoping for a small, late September wedding. Let the festivities begin! Here's a few pictures from Sunday ...

Dad, taking pictures of the newly engaged couple.

Amy, talking with Hans' mom (whose name happens to be Heidi).

Silly.

Formal.

Love it.

And this is how we actually feel. YAY!

it's a girl!

If you didn't already know that my parents' first grandbaby is on the way ... well, here's your announcement: My brother Jon and his wife Julie are expecting their first! A few days ago they had the appointment to find out exactly what kind of baby they're having .... and .... drumroll please .... they're having a girl! She's due August 28, just a day after my sister's birthday ... so Amy's hoping she comes a day early. I'm afraid I don't have pictures handy of Jon and Julie ... but if you scroll down a bit through previous posts you'll see a few where they're featured. Congrats again to Jon and Julie and baby Hammer!

goodbye and congratulations

On Sunday we had a party for my cousin's husband Jason, soon leaving for his second 7-month tour in Iraq. He's been in the Marine reserves since just after 9/11, ready and willing to serve his country in whatever way he could. However, quite honestly, he was hoping he wouldn't have to go back. And just two months before his discharge date, he was called up again. He's anxious to leave, to get the process started, so he can come home. Why is he anxious to get home? Because his wife, my cousin Rachel, is pregnant! They've waited a long time for this happy news, and should everything go according to schedule, he'll be home before his first baby is born. Pray with me for both Jason and Rachel as they endure the next 7 months separated.

Here's a few pictures from the afternoon ....

Aunt Jean, Amy Beth, Sister-in-Law Rachel.

Rachel and me. (Sing the song with me ... "Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters ....)

Lincoln, unhappily strapped to a regular chair. He didn't last long in this seat.

Brother Jon, telling stories.

Cousin Ben (and Lincoln's dad).

Caleb the Younger (Ben's son).

Heidi and the finally-pregnant Rachel!

Jason, Heidi and Caleb (Uncle Dave in the background.)

dad's show

On Saturday night, my parents hosted a gallery of my dad's favorite photographs. It was a huge success, with more than 125 people making their way up to the house for a perusal of his work. The last guests didn't leave until after 10:00. Many can't wait for the next one.

Some history:

My dad has been an amateur photographer since before any of his kids were born. He had a chance to take a couple classes by Ansel Adams himself, and eventually spent some time as one of his assistants. In the house where I grew up we had a dark room in the garage, and I still remember sitting on the table watching his prints come to life as they swayed back and forth in the various chemicals. I remember a myriad of photos in various sizes and subjects drying on towels laid all over the house. My brothers, sister and I were always handy subjects when he couldn't leave the house to pull out his camera.

Over the years, life got busy and he didn't have as much time for his favorite hobby. And then about 12 years ago we moved, and left the dark room behind. His camera was put away, his hobby put on hold.

Introduce .... the digital age. At first he was wary that a digital camera could do what his handmade view camera could. He was sure a laser printer wouldn't give near the quality of the chemical processes he knew so well. But technology got better and better, and quickly. He started researching, he bought a camera, he found a top-of-the-line printer, and he began learning a new way to practice his favorite pasttime. In fact, he found he could do more with his digital camera, programs and printer than he had been able to do with his view camera, enlarger and chemical processes.

And thus was reborn Doug Hammer, the photographer. For the last several years he's had opportunities to photograph across the United States, in Europe, in Africa, as well as his own back yard. His kids don't make the photos as often as they used to, but he's sure there will be grandkids one day, and they'll be fun and shiny new subjects, I'm sure.

I've posted a few samples of his photos, these you can find on his website, http://www.doughammerphotography.com/. I encourage you to go, take a look, see what he's done, especially if you weren't able to make the gallery on Saturday night. Yes, he's a hobbyist, but he's extremely good at what he does. He has an artistic eye balanced with a broad knowledge of the technicalities involved in a good photograph. And you can tell he absolutely LOVES his found-again art.

Abandoned truck in Virginia.

Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.

Zebras, Africa.

Dad, explaining the finer points of photography to a few gallery-goers.

a pirate birthday

There was a lot that went on this weekend, so I'll probably take this whole week to systematically unfold the various events and their photos to my many readers. We will begin with David's birthday, the first event of the weekend. His birthday was last week, on the 3rd, but we celebrated Saturday, on the 5th. We had In-N-Out burgers and ate out on the patio. Mom bought pirate paraphernalia for the sake of festivity. And David had at least two presents to open. It was low key, but a good time with family. Here are a few choice photos from the event ....

Caleb the pirate.

Heidi the pirate.

Julie ... the drunk pirate? But she's excited to celebrate.

The birthday boy and his Double-Double.

Amy the pirate. That's her hook there.

David blowing out candles ... I think it took him 6 or 14 tries to get all those candles blown out. He apparently doesn't have as much hot air as the rest of his family.

New flip flops! He was in desperate need of them.

Happy Birthday David!