End of the Year Letter!!!

Hello, friends! 

Just in case you didn't get our end of the year letter, here it is! 

Merry Christmas and thanks for reading this year! 

~Adam

Progressive Dinner!

Hello, friends! 

Last weekend we had the chance to participate in one of Nebraska InterVarsity's best student traditions: the Progressive Dinner! 

A Progressive Dinner works like this: Each course of the meal (appetizer, main, and dessert) is held at a different location. One house hosted the appetizer, a local church hosted the main course, and a few different houses hosted the desserts. Students got dressed up to the 9's, hopped in their cars, and drove all over Omaha for food, fun, and connection. 

Megan, as the interim Area Director for Nebraska, was one of the key organizer for the Progressive Dinner this year. She was recruiting students, making sure there was enough food, communicating with volunteers and staff, and she even cooked some gluten free food for some students. She was an absolute all-star. 

I had a much simpler role. I invited some of the Bellevue students and I made sure the kids ate their food. Hey, it's tough work, but somebody's got to do it. =0). 

Friends, I am going to call this year's Progressive Dinner another smashing success. Not only did we have over 100 students show up but there were specific students who where there who made my heart happy. One Bellevue student was there and had a blast making new friends and meeting people. She even connected with a Creighton student who will be transferring Bellevue next semester. Our church brought a handful of college and high school students, including some students who will be joining us at Urbana. It was a blast seeing them meet new folk. I talked to one dad on Sunday who said that his daughter had so much fun, she wants to do something like that every month. 

One thing that I love is a good tradition. We had to skip the Progressive Dinner the past few years because of the pandemic, so bringing it back last year and restarting the tradition is a huge blessing to students, staff, and ministry partners alike. These next few weeks will be busy for students as they prepare for finals and such but I'm glad they got a fun night out to eat and connect. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam 

Thanksgiving Loves...

Hello, friends! 

After an extended trip in California to see family for Thanksgiving, we're now back in beautiful Omaha, a little bit colder, a little bit fatter, and a little bit closer to Christmas! Here was our trip:

Monday: Fly out to California

Tuesday: Visit the Long Beach Aquarium with the entire family and enjoy dinner at my parent's place

Wednesday: Have a November Birthday Party for Jonah, my dad, and my niece, with another tasty dinner at home.

Thursday: Play football in the morning with friends and family over for a Thanksgiving feast in the evening.

Friday: Go to my brother's house to watch USA vs. England, then dinner at the Grand Central Market in Los Angeles 

Saturday: Hit the beach and bum around my parent's place with the entire family before going out to dinner with my parents and younger siblings

Sunday: Megan and I visited my old church, then had a lunch date with dinner out with Megan's uncle and family

Monday: We went to the Science Center in the morning, the older kids went to the beach with my mom while Megan and I ran errands, and we looked at the lights and had dinner at my younger sister's house

Tuesday: Flew home

Things I ate:

- Tommy's (the best chili burger in all the land)

- In-N-Out (a classic)

- Mandarin Noodle House (my jam!)

- Canaan (it's nice to eat some proper Chinese food)

- Kaju (Soon du bu; Megan's favorite meal of the trip)

- Korean BBQ (home cooked and delicious)

- Jook (my family may or may not have finished 2 pots of it)

- Various baked goods (is it just me, or do the donuts in Orange County just taste better?)

- LOTS of boba (the secret ingredient is real red bean)

- A Thanksgiving feast (the homemade cranberry sauce was a hit!)

Things I didn't eat this time:

- Dim sum (oops!)

- Del Taco and Jack in the Box (probably for the best...) 

I really loved my time in California. The kids had a great time playing with their cousins. It's always good to see my siblings and my parents. The weather was perfect. It was a long trip but it was a trip well worth it. Even the kids did well on the planes (shout out to OPS for the free iPads!).

There was one moment that really stuck out to me from the trip. It was a small thing but a significant thing: There's a park not too far from my parent's place and we spent a fair number of mornings walking over there to play. There's a playground and a big field next to it where folk can run around or play soccer or something. My brother in law and I took Ezra and his son (same age) to the park on Friday to play. The boys were trying to figure out what game they wanted to play and my BIL and I decided to shag balls. It wasn't anything special. He would hit the ball, I would chase it down and throw it back, and we'd repeat the process. We didn't play for more than 5-7 minutes before the boys came over and we started doing something else. 

Friends, those 5-7 minutes were the most exhilarating of the entire trip for me. I'd forgotten how much I missed playing baseball. Chasing down a fly ball. Making a stab at a liner. Getting into position to field a grounder. Throwing a rope back to do it all over again. It's been years since I'd held a baseball that wasn't being used as a personal fidget spinner or a teaching tool for the kids' T-ball. I love watching soccer (got to see US vs. Iran on the flight home!) and I love curling (currently undefeated in our league) but baseball will always be my first love. 

This trip was an absolute blessing on all levels. I have a conference in Southern California in February and we have weddings in April and September of next year, so I'll get a few more chances to be out there. Still, there's nothing quite like Thanksgiving in Garden Grove. I love it! 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam