Cardinals WIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Darren and I are Braves fans so, a Cardinals win would not normally be reason to celebrate but this win is different.  This win was for our friend Corey.  Corey worked with Darren at BSI and in April while at home for a week off while the rest of the crew was in Martinsville, Corey died in a motorcycle accident.  He was a husband, father, son, brother, friend and fanatic Cardinals fan.

Corey Twait
1971-2011

This week we are back in Martinsville and the World Series concluded last night in game 7 with a Cardinals win.  The connection wasn't lost on anyone however I cannot say it any better than Darren did when he sent out the following email.  We miss you Corey!  Go Cardinals!!!!

To all of you who knew Corey:
You may or may not know that he was a devout St. Louis Cardinal fan. And, you may or may not believe in God.  However, it was in Martinsville that we got the horrible news of his death. And now with his favorite team winning the World Series, God has given us a reason to smile in the same place, Martinsville.

I ask you each to take a moment to pray for Corey's family. And, take this as a true sign that there is a God that loves each one of us.

If I sent this to you then it means I care about you and pray for you to have a closer relationship with God. We may not always understand the things that happen all around us or even to us, but faith is how we are able to endure. With out faith, Corey would not be celebrating the Cardinals victory. He wouldn't be able to if the afterlife didn't exist. So, I hold tight to the belief that there is a God and he probably had to tell Corey to hold it down a few times during the Cardinals unbelievable come from behind season and playoffs, especially game six when they were all but done twice in back to back innings.  They had overcome unbelievable setbacks several times but I never thought they were done. I knew that Corey had sweet talked God into a Cardinal victory in his calm collective way. He can only be gone if we forget him, so please remember him this weekend and his family and yell out: "How 'bout those Cards, C Twizzle?"

Your friend in Christ,
Darren

Our Kozy Kabin

I know we're "tenters" but sometimes we need a break from the elements and nothing beats a Kozy Kabin at a local KOA.  You can only unpack and pack in the rain so many times!  Besides, we have two solid weeks of tent camping coming up next month so it all evens out.

This was the first time we had a chance to try out our new double sleeping bag with a 0 degree rating.  We were roasting!  Granted, the overnight low was only 50 and we were in a cabin, but I have high hopes that when paired with our long johns and fleece blankets, we are going to be nice and warm this winter.

I love Charlotte, NC!  It is such a beautiful city and I really look forward to the fall race there. The week started off a bit rainy (of course it did, NASCAR was in town!!!) but quickly turned into the most perfect fall days - cool nights, warm days, beautiful leaf color. You couldn't ask for more.

I have found that the best part about living on the road is getting to catch up with old friends along the way.   I am very excited that Chris & Shawn (friends of mine from high school) and their girls have settled in DC.  Our time in Baltimore will be so much more fun with them close by.

Dr. Shawn at the Pumpkin Patch.

And, while in Charlotte I was able to have lunch and catch up with Brad & Cindy (Texas friends of mine).  A lot of our time seems to be spent in Charlotte so I am hoping to be able to spend more time with them.  So much of my time lately is spent with people that I have only recently become friends with that it's nice when I get to be around the ones that "know" me.

So, this wouldn't be a Camping for Christ post with out a God moment.  This encounter has to one of the more unusual ones that we've had.  On our way to Charlotte we stopped at a rest stop to, well, rest.  When we only have one night between cities we don't get the tent out, we just put the air mattress in the back of the van and sleep.  State welcome centers/rest stops are the best for this since they have 24 hour service attendants.  Normally this is a great set up but this night was not one of them.  I tossed and turned.  It was warm.  I was getting more and more cranky by the minute.  Instead of picking a fight I really didn't want to have, I grabbed my pillow and blanket and went to the front seat.  If I need to sleep in the front I usually put up the sun shade and hang a blanket by each window.  I had no patient for such things this night.  I reclined the chair and went to sleep.

In the middle of the night it started to rain (remember, NASCAR is coming to town and that means rain!) and through the constant drop, drop, drop on the roof I heard "Hey folks!".  I hear this but don't stir.  Seriously, what ever it is can wait until daylight.  Nope.  Every few seconds for a good two minutes I hear, "Hey, Folks.".  I open one eye to see a guy standing in the rain, which is now coming down quit hard, and trying desperately to get our attention.  Fine!  Both eyes now open and I'm sitting up.

"Woah!  Ma'am, I only have my keys and cell phone!", Rain Man tells me.

I reach one hand back to wake my lumberjack in the back seat who is still sawing logs at this point.  This freaks out Rain Man a bit.

"Ma'am, I just have my keys and cell phone.  See?" He has his hands raised.  "I am almost out of gas.  My car is right behind yours.  I swear to God!"  I'm not sure if he had more he wanted to say but I reached into my purse and pulled out the only cash I had - $9 - open the door and handed it to him.

"Oh!  Ok!  Thank you and God Bless." says Rain Man.

"You have a blessed day." were my only words to him.

"What was that?"  Finally!  He wakes up!

God really does work in strange ways.  He took something that irritated me and turned it into a mission.  If I had been nice and comfy on the mattress Rain Man might not have stopped at our van.  But, as with everything, God had a purpose and He used it for good.

One of my favorite blogs is by Susan Horn, author of My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife.  I hope you will take the time to check out her blog, take the Proverbs 31 challenge and, most importantly, read her book.

www.myproverbs31life.com

Coffee, campfires and free WiFi

I realized this morning as I am sitting in one of my favorite Hot Spots (Caribou Coffee!!!  I am from the frozen tundra of the north, after all.) that one things I didn't think about when I started this blog is that I will need internet access.  Seemed easy enough when we still had a house with WiFi but on the road it has been a little hard to locate.  The hotels will sometimes have free WiFi but as I found out last week in Dover it's not always the fastest and I am not the most patient.  Thank you Caribou, Starbucks and Chick-fil-a for being easy to find and for your free WiFi.  I couldn't do this without you!

With my last post we were trying out our new Dutch oven.  Dinner was awesome!  We didn't make coals and put the oven in them as the recipe called for but, instead, I used the grate and full flame just like a stove top.  The recipe made so much that we had it for dinner that night, Darren's lunch the next day and dinner again the next night.  Even though the meal was delicious, for us, the best part was the work it took to get it made.  And, let me tell you - it was work!!  In a kitchen I would have had this meal cooked and on the table in under 45 minutes.  This one took over 2 hours!  When you have to build a fire to cook your food and wait for it to get going before you can begin cooking makes the end result that much better.

If you can't get out and build a campfire, this will still work on the stove top.

Making Witch's Brew

Witch's Brew

1 lb bacon, uncooked, chopped

1 lb hamburger

2 cloves garlic (or a "glob" of minced garlic from the jar)

1 cup celery

1 cup onion

(if you grocery store has a salad bar, get the celery and onion there.  When camping it's so much easier to have it already chopped.)

28oz can diced tomatoes, with juice

2 15oz cans black beans (I used seasoned)

2 cups uncooked egg noodles

1 10oz can mushroom (I added 2), plus liquid

black pepper, salt and cayenne pepper to taste

Brown bacon, hamburger and garlic in pot.  Drain fat.  Add celery, onion, tomatoes, beans, noodles, mushrooms and the liquid from all the cans.  Season and stir.  Add a bit of water if necessary to cook the noodles.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 30 minutes.

After our camping adventure we made our way down to Charlotte, NC to hire our first employee!  Our friend, Joy, is now the newest member of The Spicy Chocolatier family.  She will be making all of our Wild Hunt packs.  We are so excited to have her on board and know that she will be a real asset to our little company.

The night we left Charlotte for Dover we had the most amazing God moment.  We met Erin and her five kids. As we were pulling up to a stop light, Darren spotted her by the gas station holding a sign that asked for help.  Erin is a victim of domestic violence and she had been at that spot most of the day hoping to get enough money for gas to get home.  Her children were with her also, sitting in the van waiting for someone to help.  God nudged Darren to help but we didn't have any cash on us.  The light turned green and instead of turning left for the highway, we went right and right into the gas station parking lot.  We stopped and talked about what we could do to help.  We decided that it would be best if I went up and asked her if there was anything we could do to help but that we didn't have any cash.  Surprised and a bit overwhelmed, Erin told me that she just needed some gas to get back home with the kids so she could get some more job applications turned in.  I told her that we would be happy to fill up her tank.  Darren pumped gas while Erin and I went inside to get some snacks for the kids.

We exchanged info and this week we sent Erin a package to let her know that we are thinking of them and praying that she finds a job to help her out of her horrible situation.  She is a woman of faith and even though she has not had it easy lately, she stands firm that God is good and everything has a purpose.  I hope that during our next trip to Charlotte we will be able to spend time with Erin and the kids but in the meantime, she remains in our prayers.

Darren is off to Kansas without me this week.  I will be staying with one of my oldest (based on time, not age!) and dearest friends this week, Dr. Shawn!  She and I have so much catching up to do.  She did tell me that there is a Starbucks across the street from her apartment.  Free WiFi, here I come!!