Operation Christmas Child Warehouse

This evening we are volunteering at the Operation Christmas Child Warehouse in Irvine, helping to process shoe-boxes that will be shipped overseas and distributed to kids from all parts of the world. This is such an amazing ministry, and one that has made a huge impact on countless young lives.  We have just a tiny part in this huge project, but we are thrilled to be able to help with this year after year.

We never cease to be amazed at the amount of shoe boxes we see every time we enter the warehouse.

Shoe-boxes waiting to be processed

Part of the many work stations that are needed to
get this project done

We went through our training session as always, and then waited to be assigned to our stations.

Carol Brown and granddaughters on the left
Chris, Carol N and Carol L on the right

Usually we work together or at least in close proximity, but this year we were needed in lots of different areas of the warehouse . . .

Chris, Carol N and Holly and Jaylee (Carol B's granddaughters)
ready to process shoe-boxes

Carol L, Carol B, Joy and Linda B (Seema's friend)
getting to work

Seema and Debbie sorting "stuffers" to fill in
the empty spaces inside the boxes

Carol B, Holly and Jaylee preparing cartons
to hold the shoe-boxes after processing

Somehow I missed getting a group shot this year.  I don't know what happened, and promise to do better next time!

Processed cartons ready for shipment

Very cool photo of excited kids with their shoe boxes

Thank you Franklin Graham and all your staff for this amazing, wonderful, and life-changing mission, and for letting us be a small part of it.  See you next year.

Christmas Party & Gift Exchange

Today Queen Leslie invited everyone to her home for a yummy lunch and to exchange Christmas gifts.  I wasn't able to attend, and I thank Carol N for being the official photographer.  Here are the highlights of the day.

Leslie's house was filled with beautiful Christmas decorations . . .

Everything looks so pretty

Hanging out and relaxing on the patio

Time for lunch!

Dig in everyone

Debbie, Barbara and Chris

Carol L, Dixie, Seema and Queen Leslie

After lunch came the gift exchange . . .

Everyone's pretty new treasures

After all the festivities, we headed over to Calvary Chapel in Chino for their "Walk Thru Bethlehem" event.  What an experience to step back in time a couple thousand years and see what it might have been like to live in that time period . . .

The city walls

Getting past the Roman guards

Camel ride anyone?

Here are some random shots of the village, the vendors, and the activities . . .

Lots to do and see, and everyone played their part perfectly

Coins

Joining right in and becoming part of the village

Snack time

What are they looking at?

The Olive Press

Thank you Queen Leslie for a really fun day.

Front - Seema, Debbie, Queen Leslie
Back - Carol N. Dixie, Barbara, Carol L, Chris

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!!!!!

Windmill Tour

Today's adventure was a little out-of-the-ordinary, but definitely interesting and worth the time. Have you ever wondered about all the windmills that are lined up along Hwy 10 as you travel towards Palm Springs?

Palm Springs Windmills

Did you know there is a really cool tour that you can take through the windmill farm?  Well, today we took that tour, which begins here . . .

Palm Springs Windmill Tours

The walls inside the building are lined with photos that tell the history of the wind industry in Palm Springs, and we learned why this area is the best place for wind energy development.

Outside the building, our guide, Randy, walked us through an exhibit of various windmills that were used over the last 35 years and explained why some of them failed while others succeeded.

Windmill "graveyard"

Randy gave us lots of information - more than could remain in the brain

He was super knowledgeable and ready and willing to
answer any question that was thrown at him

Carol N, Joy, Seema & Debbie
enjoying the Windmill Tour

Next we hopped inside the nice air-conditioned van for a tour of the wind farm.  These windmills are gigantic - way bigger than they appear from the highway . . .

We were able to get up-close-and-personal -
to truly get a perspective on how huge
they really are - up to 420 ft. tall

The fierce winds have blown some of the older- style
windmills completely over

More windmills

But this area is used for more than just wind power.  About three years ago, solar panels were installed in the spaces between the windmills to provide another source of sustainable energy . . .

Solar panels fill the spaces between windmills

And if that isn't enough, they have a natural gas facility that can produce enough energy to provide electricity for the entire Coachella Valley . . .

Natural Gas Facility

More information about this project

We didn't know what to expect, and thought this tour might be a little dull or boring, but it turned out to be totally fascinating and educational.  We ended this portion of our day at a little family-owned market . . .

Windmill Market

For a delicious Date Shake - YUM!

We relaxed and enjoyed our shakes in the shade of this
pretty backyard that is situated between the market
and the family home

But our day wasn't over yet . . . Next stop . . .

The Cabazon Dinosaurs!

We had fun walking around and looking at the various dinosaur sculptures . . .

The Greeter - Mr. Rex 

This Tyrannosaurus Rex weighs in at 100 tons!

Please don't step on us!

This is Dinny (Dine-ee) the Brontosaurus
He is actually a 150 ton building
that houses a gift shop and museum 

These are the two main dinosaurs, but there are a few others scattered throughout the property . . .

Some scary . . . 

Some cute . . . 

Some hungry!  Run!!!!

No visit to this area would be complete without a stop at . . .

Hadley's

Such a fun place to wonder around in -
They truly have a little bit of everything

We found some treasures and then headed for home.  A little different than our normal outing, but very interesting, and we had a lot of fun.  Us Red Hatters are up for anything!  What's next?