Gabby in Colorado

I flew into Midway airport yesterday morning and a good friend picked me up from the airport to return me to my quiet home in southern Michigan. I realized it had been over two years since I boarded a plane last. As I stood in line clutching my driver's license and thinking through the contents of my bag, paranoid that I'd forgotten to leave behind any renegade bullets that may have sunk into the recesses of my backpack it dawned on me how I change and adapt to my surroundings. Once upon a time I racked up the frequent flier miles and had air port concourses and shuttle bus routes memorized. Not any more. Now I'm the guy shrieking when the little puffs of air fluff up my hair in the full body scanners. What's happening to me? Traveling is good for everybody. (Blanket statement I know...) I really believe that. I still maintain that change for the sake of change itself is very good for us humans who's brains are patterned to program muscle memory and become complacent in our routines. Traveling reminds me of lots of things: who I am now, where I've come from, where I'm going, that there is a big huge world out there that doesn't revolve around me, that there is a perspective other than mine that I need to acknowledge. This was the first big trip with a family of four. Not sure what I think of traveling with a small family the age of ours. The infant is fine. Gabby's the tough one. She's so engrained in her little patterns and routines that altering her lunch schedule and menu by one small cracker half an hour late throws off her entire day. Add that to the stress of being strapped into a car seat for 20 hours makes for a grumpy little kid. I can't say that I blame her, I was her age once too and remember hating my car seat. Thankfully I got bigger. Much bigger. When she adjusted to her new routine of no routine she became her happy, bossy high-energy self again. Between concerts we drove through some of my favorite parts of the Colorado mountains. These are the places that inspired the songs of "Songs from Brookside." I look forward to showing you the videos I took of my new family enjoying these incredibly beautiful places. I did grab some still images that I thought I thought were adorable.

 



 We spent several days at Jenna's parents house in Colorado Springs. My horse trailer has sat as a reminder of a past life, slowly rusting in their field. I finally sold it today. My Proverbs 31 wife acted the part of a barter-saavy Mike Wolf and negotiated the sale to a cowboy from Omaha. My tribute to my horse trailer will come soon. :) If you really follow my blog, the answer is yes, everything in my life holds significance. If it doesn't, I throw it away. I got these pics of our cute little someday-to-be-cowgirl
 peering through the slats in the side.





 Jenna and the kiddos stay in the home country for two weeks away from me to attend the wedding of one of Jenna's good friends. I'm going to be so productive I won't be able to miss them. That's the theory anyway. So far I'm failing.

Breckenridge

A much needed change in our routine brought our little family to Colorado for the next few weeks for some shows, a family reunion and hopefully some family time. My EP Fight for Me released last week and this is the first run of shows that I have it with me. We've experience a lot of attack leading up to and during the past few days we've been away. Traveling with a family presents a new set of challenges and Jenna and I are adjusting to this new reality. It's no longer just the two of us switching off driving and only stopping for gas until we're at our destination...it's a little more complicated. Our little Cracken (Gabby) had enough of her car seat at hour sixteen of a twenty-one hour drive. Turns out toddlers also need lots of sleep and we've realized just how valuable her home routine has been to keeping her rested! Due to either the altitude of where we are in Breckenridge, or a bug she picked up, she's been a sick little girl battling a fever and hopefully a doc visit this afternoon will reassure her folks' anxious hearts!

Last Saturday we loaded up about 4,000 diapers, babies, concert gear and finally ourselves and left for Chicago to see some great friends. Once our Nashville family, God has moved us all across the country and our paths intersected in Chicago. Jonathan is a creative arts director at Willow Creek and David is a Brentwood, TN cop. We've more than doubled in numbers...how is this happening?





We are thankful for First Federated Baptist in Des Moines for hosting us and allowing me to join them for worship on Sunday. I'm always for some reason surprised and comforted connecting with believers across the nation singing the same songs to the same God. Common bonds are pretty neat.

Our journey has led us to here where Jenna's immediate family is off enjoying the Rocky Mountains. At least we get this view from our deck where I'm awaiting my turn at rocking the little ill one.



I haven't seen this mountains since I recorded Songs from Brookside which was inspired by the places we will see this week. Come back to my website throughout the next few days and I'll give you some video stories behind the songs and tell a few stories about this beautiful place.

Wish you could see it.