August 19th, 2019-  When we came to the cabin 6 years ago, Rich and Janice took us horseback riding at  the Platte Ranch down the road.  We had so much fun that we did it again.  So painful, yet amazing!  I got to ride Copper and Tony rode Butch.  I was laughing so hard because Butch wanted to be one place yesterday and that was in the front!  Tony tried to override Butch and eventually just let go of the reins and let him do whatever he wanted.  It was hilarious!  2 hard heads going at it and Butch won.  

After the ride, we went back to the cabin to pack up and give our last hugs to everyone.  We drove to Denver since we have a 6 am flight back to Dulles and then a connecting flight to Shenandoah.  We had a wonderful time and Tony even took some pics so I know he enjoyed it too!  Thank you Lord for the time together and time away.  

Still asking the Lord what is next for me and I will await His direction.  I have a full schedule of lessons the rest of the week and so thankful for a job that I enjoy and students who are wonderful to work with each day.  Thank you for praying for me and loving me.  

Lift up my mom in prayer as she awaits biopsy results.  I will go see her on Wednesday and wrap my loving arms around her.  You are in control Lord!    

August 17th, 2019-  What a peaceful retreat at the cabin and meeting new friends.  We are so blessed!  Tony and I have been talking about the adventures we have shared during our 18.5 years of marriage and the incredible people we have met along the way.   Thank you Lord!

Mornings were cool with temps in the low 40's and low 80's by the afternoon.  I LOVED the cooler temps and I am not looking forward to going home to the 90's.  Hello fall and lower temps! 

August 16th, 2019-  We filled our day with miles on the rental car and a lot of fun going from north of Denver to south of Denver.  I had a presentation in Denver 6 years ago and we stayed in the log cabin that Mark and Pat own and we are blessed to be able to stay there because of our friendship with Rich and Janice.  The 1st day of our bicycle trip across the USA in 2006, we met Rich and I knew we would be lifelong friends.  So excited to spend a few days with them and gazing at the gorgeous Rocky Mountains.  The view never gets old!  

We would see up to 8 hummingbirds zooming around each day. Fascinating birds!  

Tony and I got to sit in the front of the raft as we went down the Poudre river today.  This was our 3rd rafting trip and we enjoyed the Class II and III rapids for our 6 mile trip.  

We enjoyed a wonderful dinner with Don and his wife and son.  Great to see them again after 3 years.  

Our stay in Fort Collins was over and we had a full day driving to FairPlay, CO.  We stopped to watch the planes takeoff from the Air Force Academy.  

Next up was the Royal Gorge Bridge and we took the gondola across and then walked back across the bridge.  We had a big horn sheep go running past us and scared me!   

We continued down the backside of Rocky Mountain National Park and ventured over to Bear Lake.  What a beautiful part of the country.  Enjoy the "tour" through the mountains.  

I was so excited to see Don my instructor in Fort Collins and we got to fly together once again.   

We stayed in a quonset hut which has a metal roof.  Our last night we had a hail storm push thru town and it was really loud!  

August 13th, 2019-​  Last week I got to fly down to the Virginia Highlands airport and deliver a 3-hr teacher training for the driver education instructors.  Only the Lord could orchestrate my flying, teaching a flying student and doing presentations for teachers as professional development.  Thank you Lord!  

​Tony is officially done teaching at the academy in DC so we are spending some time away in Colorado where I did my flight training 3 years ago.  

I enjoyed the flight from SHD Shenandoah to Dulles and then Dulles to Denver.  We had VFR (visual flight rules and no clouds) for most of the trip  

I want to send a thank you out to Steve for the beautiful jewelry box he made me from the Sassafras tree that fell down on our property last year.  He does amazing woodworking and surprised me last week.  He has "8 fingers wood shop" because he took off 2 fingertips years ago.  He took a chunk out of another finger on this project and we told him he can't rename his shop 7 fingers because he is making something for me!    Thankfully he was able to sand out the blood stain!  

I wanted to visit my instructor Don McMillen who trained me for my CFI and CFII (flight instructor ratings) in 2016.  I am so grateful for his investment in me.  The reason I am flying full time is because of Don.  Nice to go back out to Fort Collins 3 years later, rent a car, visit the beautiful area and even fly with Don again.  

Tony and I did some driving around Denver and then ventured out to Rocky Mountain National Park.  Absolutely stunning!  Tony joked that I took about 1000 pics, but it was so beautiful and I tried to capture it.  

Chasm falls along the Old Fall River Trail Road, which is a one-way dirt road up to the Alpine Visitor Center at over 12,000'.  The ranger suggested this route and I am so glad we chose this trail.  Beautiful and challenging!

We stopped to hike up to the top of a peak and we were huffing and puffing due to the high altitude.  A couple was resting at the same place and they were from Appleton, Wisconsin.  That made me laugh as I told them about training there for several months this past year.  

We hung out above 12,000' for a bit and warmed up after hiking in 47 degree weather.  The hot chocolate tasted delicious.  We even saw a herd of elk laying in a field- spotted my 1st wild elk!  Here is a marmot sunbathing.  

It is getting late so I will post some more pics after I get some much needed rest.  The internet is really slow and we are getting a storm with hail outside.  Pretty loud as it hits the top of our metal air B7B roof.  

August 1st, 2019-  Rode my bike 5 miles to the airport (KPCW) and Bruce flew a Cessna 152 up from Dayton, Ohio and we spent the afternoon exploring the island of Port-In-Bay.   He let me fly over the lake and it was spectacular from the air!  

Once we landed on the island we walked 3/4 of a mile to main street.  There was a 1963 amphibcar going in and out of the water.  It was intriguing!  We walked over to examine the seals on the door, inspect the engine and I finally said "Bruce you want to try " and he said "sure!"  Wow!  That was so much fun and a unique way to be in the water.  They were giving free rides in their car.  It is a mini version of the big duck boats you see in cities.  

The lady in the video came over and told me to try it because it was so much fun!  Glad we took the plunge.  

We walked over to Perry's Monument which is 317' tall and made of pink granite.  It is one of the tallest open -air observation decks and the view was incredible!  

I loved the monument and talking to the state park rangers at the top.  Great way to see all the surrounding islands and even into Canada.  We found a restaurant that was a fire truck and that was cute.  Sent the pics to Tony.  The bar stools even had bottles on the bottom of the seats.  

I jogged down to the shoreline this morning to see one last sunrise and it was a beauty!  Spent some time singing, working out and worshipping the Lord.  Great way to end the week here.  

My favorite boat the "Miss Cindy" zoomed by and I was smiling as they headed off to fish the lake today.  

May you be encouraged today by all the beauty that surrounds us.  Serve the Lord with every breath in your lungs, beat of your heart and every step you take today! 

Psalm 101:1-  I will sing of your love and justice; to you, Lord, I will sing praise.  

July 31st, 2019-  We have had some beautiful evenings the last few days and I have enjoyed the tranquility of being beside the water.  

Osh Kosh is a HUGE flying event that happens each summer and we got to experience it for the 1st time with Bill and Colleen in 2017.  Here are some of my favorite pics I saw that were posted this year of the F-35 which is a loud and incredible plane.  

July 30th, 2019-  The past week has been full of flying, helping out family and thanking the Lord for all He has done for me.  I am so blessed!  One of my students wanted to fly to Ingalls Field (KHSP) which is Hot Springs, VA.  We took off before sunrise and what a delight to see the sun come up.  

Tony and I drove up to Syracuse, NY last week to help his brother JJ.  We took a trailer up and brought back several pieces of large machinery that we gave him 3 years ago.  I had a scare when we got there and JJ's large dog (an Italian Cane Corso) charged at me and jumped up at my face and bit my hand as I crossed my hands and covered my face.  He thankfully bit the meaty pad of my lower palm and did not break the skin.  I love dogs, but kept my distance from him all weekend. 

We stopped in Scranton, PA to break up the 8 hour drive and spent the night with a buddy from college that Tony has known for years and he is a golf pro at the course.  It was VERY hot and humid so we only played 9 holes.  On the 9th hole, par 3, 151 yards I had this beautiful shot!  I was doing a happy dance and some guy in the clubhouse even said "Nice shot" when we went in to finish.  People asked if I drilled the putt and I had to say no, but did get a par!  I am pleased with that because many times I have so many strokes it doesn't even have a name after "double bogey."  

On our way home we saw this HUGE paint bucket that is used for advertisement along interstate 81 and I was thankful for the AC in the truck as the temps flirted with triple digits.  

Several people sent me texts while I was in NY because Blue Ridge Community College sent out a flyer with one of my students on the cover...Daniel Camden.  How exciting to see them promoting our flying program.  

I love music and there is a song lately that has me playing it over and over as I drive to and from the airport. The chorus says..... I am a nobody, trying to tell everybody, about somebody who saved my soul.  Every since you rescued me, you gave my heart a song to sing, I'm living for the world to see, nobody but Jesus!  Casting Crowns sings "Nobody" and I know I will be dancing around and singing out loud when Bill, Colleen, Tony and I see them in concert next month at the Shenandoah County fair.  Click here to listen.

Joel and I flew down to Smith Mountain Lake to fill up his gas tanks and I got to fly in his new plane for the 1st time.  That is a SWEET plane and fast!  What a beautiful lake from the air and we were excited to see Joel's original plane that I trained him in for his instrument was parked at Shenandoah and we pulled his new Bonanza beside it for a pic.  Thank you Lord for the relationships that I have built thru the years.  I am SO excited to see Joel and Ashley get married next year!   

Flying down to the Roanoke airport, I saw a cornfield with a Superheroes theme cut out in it.  Pretty cool to see from the air!  Look on the right hand side and you will see 2019 Layman Family Farm, Batman, Superman, the Flash and Captain America. 

Tony, Larry and Ellie will be competing in the national shooting competition at Lake Erie this week so I decided to tag along.  Here are a few pics from our trip up, Camp Perry, my 33 mile bike ride, the aviation museum I discovered at the airport and of course the cows standing in the middle of the road as we drove through West Virginia.  So thankful it was daytime and we could see them!  

We have a nice Air B&B house to stay in this week in Port Clinton, Ohio.  

I went for a 33 mile bike ride while Tony, Ellie and Larry were competing.  When I got to the wharf, a boat was pulling away from the dock and I love the name on the side!  I didn't have a certain distance or destination in mind and came across the Marblehead Lighthouse, the Erie-Ottawa International Airport and the aviation museum.  It was so hot and I found an ice cream shop open at 9:30 am and enjoyed some caramel ice cream.  Yummy!  I liked the mural on the wall that had an airplane called the "Tin Goose" and  it used to take people across the lake.  Bruce is flying up tomorrow to see me and is going to fly me to Put-In-Bay and I looking forward to seeing him and flying in this area.  Enjoy the pics from my excursions.  

July 17th, 2019-  Bill asked me to ride along last week and we hopped in his plane and flew to Detroit in 2 hours, got 98 gallons of fuel and came back home.  Round trip- 5 hours....pretty incredible!   A whole new world that I never knew existed and what privilege!  

On the way up to Detroit we were flying along and lost pressurization!  It was SO loud and we immediately descended from 16,000' to 12,000'. It is an experience I won't forget because we trained for it during jet training and we had oxygen masks to put on within 5 sec, but I had no experience with the real thing.  Bill and I were not high enough that it was critical to get oxygen immediately, but the jets can go up to 30,000'.  A clamp corroded and we discovered the cause of the problem several days later.  We continued the flight and just stayed lower than our intended altitude.  

I saw an A5 Icon amphibious aircraft on the field in Detroit.  Wow!  They are a unique aircraft and caught my eye.  If you live near water (and can afford one), these are the way to go! 

Sarah sent me a pic and video of the seaplane she flies in NY.  It is HUGE and sits so high.  I have never flown in a seaplane before and may have to go up and visit Sarah for the experience one day.   

Being the TEAM RHUBARB leader at the JMU Physical Education Institute is always a highlight of my year!  All the team leaders have fruits, veggies and healthy food names.  We meet on Sunday and the conference goes thru Wed.  We are from all over the state of VA and these folks are relationships I have built the last 20 years.  I am so blessed!   Lots of hugs this week and I am a hugger.

Team Rhubarb is my group and we created a brain booster for teachers to use in their classrooms.  Here is my INCREDIBLE team this year. 

My friend Dianne works at JMU so I stopped in several times each day to give her a hug and love on her.  I have know her since I was 17 years old and she was pregnant with Chad and Daniel.  They are now grown and out of the house.  Dianne and I bonded over several traumatic experiences and our hearts have been linked forever.  You are such a sweet lady and a dear friend.  Love you!  

Here are a few highlights from the week at JMU.  Enjoy the time-lapse video of the sunrise overlooking interstate 81 one morning as I was walking around campus.  

I have been re-energized this week doing 3 presentations over the last few days and was asked to be part of the keynote presentation on Tues with Ron.  I taught the 320 teachers how to juggle.  Each morning at 6:30 am I taught unicycling.  It is so fun to pass on those skills to others and they return back to their schools with new ideas and skills.  

Here are a couple of pics of the sunset from a flight student.  I stand in awe of the beauty that the Lord creates each day.  May you have the eyes to see it, the heart to appreciate it and the drive and motivation to share the love of the Lord with everyone around you!