Keri’s been busy with fieldwork and plans to update on her work at Mary Free Bed soon. C.J. has been working about 15 hours a week for McGinnis & Associates and taking care of a lot of stuff around the apartment. He's really enjoying having time to do other things like exercise and practice percussion (he misses playing with real people, though!). He also was able to be at Keri's parent's new house in Spring Lake for a whole day and help out with moving them in and working on their yard.
We went back up to the cottage for another weekend there on the 20th. We had the cottage to ourselves that night, and it was nice to have a bit of time alone after a busy week. Keri's siblings and their families flew in for a week of vacation at the cottage and an upcoming wedding. They all came up to the cottage the next day to join us. The last time we were all at the cottage was two summers ago, so it was great to be there together again. Plus, we got to see our nephew (Nate) again! We saw Nate in April, but he has changed so much in the past few months. He loves to play and is talking so much now. He is such a joy, and it’s a blessing every time we get to see him!
Playing bocce with the guys
Another beautiful sunset at the cottage
Nate singing "The B-I-B-L-E" song
Cottage time included time on the beach, pure relaxation, reading, games, badminton, bocce, and other "cottage traditions" like picking blueberries. On Sunday morning, we were all introduced to the church where Keri's dad has been the preacher since Decemberr (Covenant Life CRC in Grand Haven). We had been there once before, but this was the first time for Keri's siblings. We are overwhelmed by God's provision of a new, caring church body for Keri's parents. They are thriving and it was so good to meet some of the people that are making them feel at home! After another afternoon and evening back at the cottage, we left the family at the cottage and headed back to Grand Rapids.
After a few days of normalcy, we entered into wedding craziness. C.J. was an usher in his friend Aric Vanderzee's wedding on the 27th, so we were able to participate in all of the activities for that. There is a lot to tell about all of the wedding events, so we’ll include that in another blog entry. A highlight of the week for Keri was a yacht ride with her parents and siblings while C.J. was busy with wedding stuff. After seeing all of us at church, a member of Keri’s dad’s congregation offered the ride to us. Also during the week, Kelly and Ryan, Keri’s sister and brother-in-law, heard that they are going to be able to go to England for a post-doc for Kelly. They’ve been waiting for a long time for grants to come through, but they’ll be leaving in January. We’re definitely going to be making a trip to see them!
Jon, Haley, and Nate on the yacht
After the wedding on Friday, the whole family headed back to Keri’s parent’s for the night. We all said goodbye to Kelly and Ryan, who had to leave in the morning and went to the cottage for the rest of the weekend. It was sad to have to say goodbye, but we’re excited for them to be able to go back to San Francisco and make preparations to leave for England. Their future has been unsure for a while now, and we thank God for revealing his will for them.
We finally had a good swimming day at the cottage (water warmer than 65 = good swimming day), so we really enjoyed the water. The remaining Vanderzee kids were also able to come to the cottage and play a very competitive (we tied—as is customary) game of beach football highlighted by a last-second, Boise State-like play!
Jon with Bryan Vanderzee and his son Jake
We headed back to Keri’s parents house in the evening and went to Covenant Life again in the morning. Jon, Haley and Nate left for Seattle that afternoon, but we went back to the cottage for the rest of the day. It was very quiet at the cottage with all of the siblings gone, but it was a good way to end such another busy week. We’re so thankful for all the time that we got to spend with Keri’s family. We’re also incredibly blessed to have families that love each other and really enjoy each other. We’re not sure when we’re going to get to see all of them again with all of our travels out of the country, but we know that time spent together is something that we all love and value.
More to come on the wedding soon…
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