Last week was my week in Idaho to see Whitney and participate in our church's mission trip. Eastside has been on this trip about five times now, but this is the first time they've tried to emphasize and draw a younger crowd. One of Trey and Whitney's goals out in Idaho has been (and will be) to start small groups among young families, so they wanted some younger ones out in Idaho to try and help with that goal.
There are so many pictures that I didn't take - mostly the action/ministry shots, because we had our hands very dirty and I just didn't remember to grab my phone. One of the ladies on our trip took pictures almost constantly of the work that was being done, so hopefully, I'll be able to follow up in the next month or so.
Here are more of my "fun" pictures that I took this week!
Flying into Idaho Falls, all I could think of was, "Where are all the mountains?" Apparently, Idaho Falls is pretty flat and then it gets more mountainous as you go.
Glenn was my travel buddy, bodyguard, and tour guide. He is like a tall, Southern cowboy, and I just loved traveling with him. This wasn't his first time in Idaho, so he did a great job of maneuvering airports and figuring out schedules.
One of our first views...it was very brown (we were there in the dry season). I was told over and over that I would just fall in love with the area and immediately want to move out there. For me, I will say that it grew on me. At first, I thought, nope, I love Georgia, and I don't get the obsession with the endless, brown mountains. As the week went on, though, the 360-degree view of mountains definitely draws you in, and I learned that there were plenty of lush areas surrounding Salmon.
One of the cool spots Whitney took me; the "towers" (I think?).
The mountains just go on forever. It's very awe-inspiring!
One of the green spots where we stopped. I'm not sure if the is part of the Lemhi River (I'm so directionally-challenged), but the actual Lemhi River weaved throughout the entire area. That was one of my favorite parts!
Yes, a lot of my pictures involved mountains. You can tell I'm from Florida.
On Friday, Whitney and I took a road trip all around the area, and this is one of the towns we drove through. How fantastic is a population of only seven people?! Whitney and I were both like, "Why bother?"
I loved how parts of the mountain just jutted to the sky.
We stopped for brunch at the Stanley Baking Company and they had epic bacon!
One of the many rivers we checked out!
I sent this picture to Steve, and I think it may have convinced him to buy a plane ticket.
This lake was simply gorgeous. Cold, crystal water, evergreen trees, and snow-capped mountains in the background. Whitney and I sat on this dock and just let our feet hang in the water. It was so peaceful. I don't know if I would have wanted to swim in water that cold, but I could've lived on a houseboat in the middle of that lake in a heartbeat!
The water was so clear!
I loved being able to catch up with Whitney and just do "real life" with them during the week. I was thankful to be able to stay with them all week, so I got to see the kids and crash, and just be with them.
The "in town" church is Salmon Valley Baptist, and about 20 minutes away, there's the Lemhi River Cowboy Church.
I don't know why my phone blacked out the corners, but this is Salmon Valley. It's a lot larger than I expected with a sanctuary, fellowship hall, a bunch of classrooms, and a few offices.
The cowboy church was much simpler; it was like a one-room, long fellowship hall. I didn't get a picture, but I actually liked the cowboy church better - it was so simple and very much "come as you are". (Both churches were, but there was just something about having all of the ranchers walk in from their work and sit down to sing.)
The bakery in town - Odd Fellow's Bakery - was delicious! On quite a few mornings, we stopped by for hot, ham and swiss croissants. Wow!
We tried to take a field trip to the Lemhi Pass with Glenn, but after running over a dog (seriously, but he was fine) and rescuing a college girl with a shredded tire (she was struggling), we decided just to call it a day and turn around. The area is well known for where Lewis and Clark did a lot of their exploring, and there's quite a few landmarks as you drive anywhere.
Hearing Trey preach on Sunday morning was an awesome treat! I miss sitting under his teaching, and he preached a great sermon.
This is the Tendoy School where we did most of our hands-on work throughout the week. Last year, the team from Eastside painted the entire outside of the building, so this year, we did a lot of organizing and painting on the inside. Not only are the Sapp kids probably attending this school in the Fall, but the teacher is not a believer, so it was an incredible opportunity to minister to her, as well as letting the community know that the local church is invested in this school.
The view from Tendoy; it was beautiful! [Fun historical fact: Tendoy was the chief of the Lemhi Indians. Hence, the "Tendoy" School and the "Lemhi" Pass, River, etc.]
Our team of guys did an amazing job working on landscaping at the school, and they laid the entire side yard with sod! You can see the difference between the gravel parking lot and the new side yard!
One of the days we were working at the school, Mike Palmer, the head Pastor of Salmon Valley, was cleaning some sort of wire cable off his truck, and accidentally flung it back as I was walking right behind him. It only resulted in this little mark on my forehead, but I told him I was going to make up an awesome story about getting hit by a metal chain while working on a ranch.
After prayer walking in town, Glenn bought our group strawberry milk shakes. I told you he was a great guy! (And for the record, the Miller Lite and Coors glasses just held water.)
I just liked this "artsy" window in town.
Wednesday night was my last night, and Trey was working late, so Whitney and I got to snuggle in bed and watch Pride and Prejudice. After working on different projects all week, it was nice to reconnect again at the end.
One more ride with these precious littles as we drove to the airport! They totally helped me survive a week away from the girls! (Evelyn and I may have cried a few times during FaceTime, but it got better as the week went on.)
There were horses and cows everywhere! I finally stopped to take a picture for Bella and got to pet some.
I really, really wanted to sit on a horse (just sit; I was told repeatedly that I was crazy to think I'd get to ride one at 6-months pregnant), but we literally didn't have the time. There was a "free day" on the last day, but I had already flown back to Georgia, so I wasn't able to do it.
Steve welcomed me at the airport with roses and an unsweet tea! After two weeks, this was longest time we've ever been away from each other, and it was a little rough by the end. He leaves again on Monday to head to Nashville for the week, but we've had a great weekend!
I loved my week in Idaho, from the chance to interact with other grown-ups, to seeing Whitney and Trey, to the incredible experiences with being the hands and feet of Christ!
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