Christmas Morning

I'm sitting in the airport waiting for my flight home and looking back on this week. It was fun to hang with the whole family (or "the original four") as we've called ourselves in the past. I think my dad said it at some point this weekend: we're blessed, some families don't like each other. We love spending time together. Here are a couple of videos from Christmas morning:

Christmas Morning (Part 1) from Joshua Burcham on Vimeo.

Christmas Morning (Part 2) from Joshua Burcham on Vimeo.

Learned a lot about my siblings yesterday when we played to truths and a lie. I thought more highly of my older siblings before that game.

My Week!

My trip is coming to an end and I leave to catch my flight back to Phoenix in a couple of minutes. It's been a great long weekend to spend with my mom and Nathan. But before I go back to the real world let me update you on the happenings of this weekend:

- Went to the Art Museum for my mom's birthday. It was different, but still worth the trip. It rained all day, but I think it was a good birthday for my mom.
- Watched some movies: Oceans 13, Nanny Diaries, Firewall, Mama's Boy, Day Zero and a few others.
- Ate out at Yard House, Olive Garden, California Pizza Kitchen, Cheesecake Factory & a steak joint. Don't get to eat out that often anymore and it was nice to be able to spend time with my mom over a meal.
- Shopped. I'm not a huge fan of shopping, but I did get some stuff. That's always nice.
- Went to service at my mom's church. It was good and it looks like they have a lot of great change ahead of them. Exciting to see.
- Spent some time with Nate. I wish I was able to do more of that. With all his quarks, he is a great kid.
- Had dinner over at Kris and Laura's house. Saw the little ones. Payton (sp?) is two and half and full of life. We walked in with her stark naked doing her business in the back yard. It was cute and funny. Told Kris to film it for blackmail later in life. Lucas is a cute kid. Their family seems to be doing really well!
- NO HOCKEY. It's been awhile since I've visited Colorado without seeing one of Nathan's games. Sounds like he is doing real well. It would of been cool to see him play. Maybe later in the season. He was in Minnisota till Sunday night for a tournament.

Red Hat Society

This just came to my attention and I had to share. My Grandma is a member of the Red Hat Society. We'll maybe not them exactly, but a similar group. I haven't gotten it confirmed from her yet. These are the ladies to see at Restaurants that all look alike with their purple dress and red hats. I would of loved to able to post a picture of her and her group, but I don't have one and I like my life. I don't think I seen my Grandma in a dress either. This is a tribute to you Grandma and to your group!

Finally Here!

Flight left 3 hours late, but I arrived in Colorado. One of the things I always look forward to about visiting is being able to talk with my mom to the wee hours of the morning. I like to talk and spend time with people. It's one of my love languages. And sitting down and talking with my mom about life is always a good time. Had lunch at Yard House and looking forward to the rest of the weekend.

I Don't Feel Good

Did a little wine tasting, soda style tonight with the Horton kids. It was cool, can't say the soda was good though. Bevmo has a whole row of non-norm Soda that you don't find in grocery stores. We picked out 8. Fun experience, but my stomach didn't like all the soda.

It Made my Mom Cry

Can't deny God's hand is moving when your mom starts to cry. My mom wants to protect me at all costs. When things are going to be hard or tough for me she wants to step in and save her baby. Unless of course I was in need of money, then her response was normally "tough luck," but when I was called into pastoral ministry she knew it wasn't going to be easy and there were going to be times when it was just downright hard. She knew it would hurt her baby. And when I told her God was calling me to plant Ridgepoint. I wouldn't use the word excited to describe her reaction.

A couple of weeks ago we were just catching up on the phone and she brought true joy to my heart. Not sure if she realized it, but it was such an amazing moment for me, it just another way God was confirming what He is doing. "They made me cry" came through the phone line. My mom explained how Ridgepoint's core values made her cry. John and I aren't smart enough to have come up with those values on our own; they were divinely written. God is moving and he blessed me with a small moment of joy as we journey towards His call.

Happy Birthday, CAM!

Cameron turns 16 today! I know it sounds crazy. He starts driving in a couple of weeks. Happy birthday!

One Right After the Other

My little, well he really isn't little (I think he has a foot on me), brother turns 22 today or tomorrow. Depends on what the time zone is in Turkey! Happy Birthday, Andrew!

Check out his blog, as he post about his trip to Turkey.

Wendy Turns the Big 3-0!

It's my big sisters birthday today! Hope your day goes great, Wendy! Make sure and take some Advil before going to bed. Don't want to wake up with all those aches and pains in the morning. Just kidding. Love you and miss you.

Home Sweet Home

I am for sure a home-buddy and love being back in Phoenix. I missed this place; even if its over 110 degrees. The Horton kids surprised me at the airport, which was really cool. Cal and Chels were wearing all the clothes in their closet to be funny. It was a nice surprise.

I had a great time in Cali. Hanging with my sister's boys and my brother's daughter was a blast. Logan is so smart and going so fast. Cam picks up on things so fast. He was swimming my himself at my dads and he just turned four! It is getting harder and harder to leave, though. We only get to see Steve and Gabby maybe a couple times a year. It was tough to say bye. I had to fight back tears when saying goodbye to Wendy, Steve and the boys. I knew it was hard for my brother to say bye.

I still have some pictures on my phone that I'll post later this week.

You Haven't Eaten Until...

you have had a chance to eat a Rosa Maria's Burrito! I've have been know to drive an hour out of the way to get my hands on one or three. We were raised just down the street from the original store and have been eating their burritos since was rolling (I would say crawling, but my mom claim I never crawled, just rolled). Check them out at www.rosa-marias.com and if you are ever in Southern California look them up. Make sure and order a burrito, that is what makes them famous. Anything else on their menu is just okay. Keep the burrito simple. I recommend a Mean/Rice/Cheese.

Beach

Yesterday we spent laying in the sand and playing in the ocean. Got up early and headed down. Steve and Gabby don't get the chance that often to be able to dip their feet in the ocean. Everyone seemed to have a good time and Steve, Gabby and I came back with a souvenir you can only get from teh beach. Well, you can get it other places, but not as good (see the last picture).

Golf and Dinner.

Nothing Better. Family, Cigars, Shrimp, Steak and Captain. It was a fun night after a day of golfing. Which by the way was probably the best game I've ever played. I have a long ways to go still, but I'm improving.
Did you know that golf stands for Gentlemen Only, Females Forbidden?

Pictures I Promised

It was a long day! Here is the play by play:

• Picked up Steve and Gabby from the Airport. They only packed two carry ons. I was impressed.
• Headed over to Hodad's Restaurant. Dad saw them featured on the Food Network and wanted to try them out. I would love to tell you they were amazing, but we never had a chance to test them out. It was packed down there.
• Ate at Red Rock. Much better then I expected. I had a chicken pizza that was finger linking good.
• Spent five hours at the zoo. Looked the same from when I was in second grade. They should have animals fight or something, so it's more entertaining.
• Swam and had dinner.
  

Vacation is Finally Here!

I've been looking forward to Cali for a couple of weeks now and it's finally here. One of the best parts of being on vacation at my dad's house is we eat like kings! I'm hurting right now, though. I ate way TOO MUCH food today! I'll post some pictures of my sister's boys tomorrow when I get a better internet connection.

Highlights:

• Seeing the family. I haven't seen them since February!
  
• Islands Burgers
• Playing some Battlefield: Bad Company with Jeff. It's a pretty crazy game
  
• Swimming

Tomorrow:

Picking up Steve and Gabby from the airport and heading over to the San Diego Zoo. I haven't been there since second grade. Probably another big dinner and for sure some more swimming. Should be a fun day for all.

Founds Some Photos

I was cleaning up my computer this morning and found some cool pictures of the family. I know, I have a good looking family.

Soccer Monday

Since Andrew has been making us watch the Euro Cup (I believe that is what it is called) over the last week or so. We decided to go play some soccer on Monday morning. It was fun and hot. So we finished the morning off with Good Egg. Which I would put up against any breakfast joint out there.

Happy Father's Day, DAD!

Check out Steve's blog, he wrote a really cool thing on my Dad. Not only is he a great Dad, he is also an amazing Grandpa. I can't wait to have kids so they can experience Grandpa's love.

Thank you for EVERYTHING, Dad!

Love you, Dad!

Vacation to Cali

Can't wait to see the family at the end of the month! I'm totally stoked to see my brother and his daughter down from North Dakota. I haven't seen these two, below, since February and can't wait to see them either!

Can't wait to see you all in a couple of weeks! Thanks Dad for everything! Thanks for giving us all the opportunity to see each other so often, even though we live some many states away.

Happy Birthday!

Fourteen years ago, Nathan James was born. Happy 14th Birthday, Nathan! Have a good week and enjoy Mexico you'll have a good time.