Missions Bike Ride Day 1...From Pine Bluffs, WY to Kimball, NE

Howdy Family and Friends,
This is Day 1 of the Missions Bike Ride 2011. For the next 7 days, Pastor Busch and I will be posting about our view from the bicycle and maintaining the bachelorette post at home with 4 Busch Kids!
Today, Monday Sept. 5, 2011 Pastor got in the vehicle and started the long ride at Grand Island where my brother Jon Miller started his morning off in Omaha! They drove all the way to Kimball, Nebraska recounting war stories and bragging about past accomplishments. Of course this was not to be a day without eating at the famous Tacos y Tortas in Lexington (a camp favorite…but a first for Dave and Jon). Riders were picked up along the way and finally got to the motel in Kimball and rode from there to the border as the wind was at their backs. Pastor said, “We had been told that the road was flat and for the most part it is, but the air is much drier than it is around Burwell. I made the mistake of not grabbing my chap stick before taking off for the first ride. But the ride went good—uneventful and we made it safe to the Wyoming border 23 miles later. And of course I have a minor cough but this year I am much better equipped with all sorts of medicine!
Tomorrow is downhill most of the way. We are supposed to drop a 1000 feet in 80 miles and we are all praying for tailwinds! “
Back home from the picture window at my house, life is back to somewhat normal minus one very missed Daddy! Tears were shed by the two youngest Busch Boys this morning as they watched their Daddy ride away a church van with their Uncle Jon. We got back to Burwell about 3:15 p.m. and spent the rest of the day playing outside. We enjoyed a picnic supper of leftovers and boys were in bed by 8:15. Tomorrow is a brand new day though…from my much quieter picture window to yours, have a great day!

Busch Boys Turned Loose at Burwell Elementary School...

Howdy Family and Friends,
It’s hard to believe that another school year is already upon us! Where did the summer go? None the less, it’s here and I am not ready! This morning, I sent the Busch Boys off to school. Yes, all 3 Busch Boys headed out the door to Burwell Elementary School. Jacob as a 4th grader, Caleb as a 2nd grader and Isaac as a Kindergartner!
It’s hard to believe as I sit here writing this blog while looking at their baby pictures that they are where they are. Shouldn't I be sitting on the couch cuddling with them? Watching them coo and smile back at me?
Each year, I write a note to the boys in their notebooks that they will find when they open them for the first time and as I wrote Isaac’s, it was hard to keep the tears from flowing. His letter included the following excerpt:
“I can’t believe that today is your first day of Kindergarten. Are you sure you’re old enough? The calendar say you are, but in my head there’s no way!!!” I remember two years ago saying the same thing to Caleb as he entered Kindergarten and four years ago as Jacob embarked on his first day to Kindergarten at Thedford Elementary School! Where oh where has time gone??!!
As I watched them take off for school from the front sidewalk, the boys excitedly talking about what they were going to do and Caleb telling Isaac all about what to expect in Kindergarten, I saw Jacob stop his bike and come flying back to me. I knew he hadn’t forgotten anything! He jumped off his bike, took my hand and said, “Mom, I know your sad today because we are leaving you to go to school, but I love you.” He gave me a quick hug and off he went…and so did my heart!
Don’t get me wrong here I am excited for them as they start school, its just hard to believe that the Busch Boys are headed to school. (Just because the ol’ calendar says they are old enough sure doesn’t make me want to let them go!)
I want to leave you with this quote (and thankfully I am not at this stage yet). "A child enters your home and for the next twenty years makes so much noise you can hardly stand it. The child departs, leaving the house so silent you think you are going mad." From my first day of school picture window where its way too quiet to yours, have a great day!

Church Camp Day 1 of Sr. High...

Howdy Family and Friends! Well, I have survived the first day of Sr. High camp here at The Crossing at Lexington! Overall uneventful other than moving into M 13 where I will spend the next four weeks of my life and of course reconnecting with old friends!
After a yummy supper of pizza, it was time for evening service—a highlight of coming to camp! Worship was definitely louder and more upbeat than what I am used to, but none the less exciting! The speaker drove home a point to me though. He said, “Worship happens when you make a commitment to serve others.” I had never really thought about that side of it. Then on to the preaching of the Word…phenomenal! Don’t get me wrong…I am married to a Pastor, and he can bring the Word, but tonight was just about one little word—“BUT”.
So often times I find myself wanting to push things through quickly so that I can get them marked off my to do list! Although I have good intentions, it may not be God’s timing! The statement was said, “Waiting on God now prevents lots of hurt later.” Once again my thinker started thinking, “How many times have I done something on my own time and not God’s?” I want to pursue my dreams and goals and just go! Go! GO! Instead of waiting on the right time. But yet again the speaker threw another curve ball at my thoughts and said, “Its not about living my dream, its about living God’s dream!” Wow! What is God’s dream for me? Am I doing what He has planned for my life? But then of course the devil wanted to get his two cents worth in and of course said planted thoughts in my head about how this couldn’t happen.
At the end of the service, I just wanted to cry. So many thoughts and emotions had welled inside me and I felt lost! I prayed and just sought the Holy Spirit to move in my life, to restore my passions and breathe fresh energy into my spirit.
After some much needed time alone with God, I felt much more at peace with life—but still wanting to pursue more of God—to touch the throne of His grace and mercy! As the service concluded, Pastor Toby got up and restated an earlier comment the speaker had mentioned and its this, “There’s a big mountain in my life that needs to move and it’s my ‘but’t!” (IF you don’t understand the punctuation, the sermon was titled “BUT” and the extra “t” that is on the last quote is to encourage me (or you) that the only mountain in your way is yourself!
From my first day of camp picture window to yours, have a great week! PS (Get up and do something about your relationship with God!)

Letting Go...

Howdy Family and Friends! It's been 3 days since I put my foreign Busch girl on her plane back home to Sweden and let me tell you, I miss her. Never did I imagine that I would get that close to her. First of all, I have had exchange students before...although they were all boys, it was not this hard. Julia Nielsen came to live with us in Burwell on July 27, 2010. We picked her up in Kearney late at night and her first meal with us was an ice cream treat from Coldstone...I saved the receipt (Why? I don't know!)

Her first weekend was spent with a house full of friends she didn't know for the Rodeo weekend in Burwell. She rode the church float with us and attended Rodeo that weekend. I can only imagine what she thought!

From there, she got involved in school and meeting other friends and branched out a little from our home and soon enough started living a fun filled life! And now, here it is the time has come and she has gone home.

When we arrived at the airport (late of course) at 6:15 a.m., the airline threatened not to let her on the flight. Being the person I am, I kindly (STERNLY) informed the lady that she was a foreign exchange student on her way home and she had to be on the flight. Needless to say, things moved quickly and the next thing we knew, Julia was on her way home. No lengthy goodbyes, nothing. Nothing more than a quick hug goodbye and tears flowing freely from our eyes.

When I got home, I walked into Julia's room and of course her smell was still there, along with a few personal items that she couldn't fit into her bag. With tears still freely flowing down my cheeks, I grabbed her bed and let my frustrations out and moved it before collapsing on it and just crying.

Since she has gone home, I have been able to SKYPE with her twice which has been great but her room echoes and I absolutely don't like it. With each day, it gets easier, but I miss her terribly!

From my teary eyed picture window to yours, have a great week!

Christmas In Heaven

I came across this song and even though the Christmas Holiday is "over" according to the calendar, it doesn't have to be over in our hearts and lives. As I sit to write this, my daughter has been gone for 10 years now and my Grandpa for 3. Each year the pain is a little easier to manage, but I still wonder about what life is like for them. Shortly after my Grandpa passed away, I wrote a letter to him that was posted on here. Now this song has once again brought up more questions that someday I will be able to not only ask, but find out myself. Merry Christmas Rebecca Jalise and Grandpa Miller...

The Last Hoorah! The finish line is in site!!!

Here we are again. I apologize for the tardiness of this blog. Life has been chaotic at best. Back to the last day of the last day of the ride…We left Nebraska City with a motorcycle escort from Rob Conner, the pastor of Nebraska City. As we were leaving town I noticed that something seemed a little weird with my bike and going down hills the chain got really loose. We stopped 5 miles in to the ride and found that the gear on my back wheel was hanging up and thus I couldn't coast down hills. That was a big problem. So I once again climbed in the van with my wheel and worked on it. 7 miles later I got it working and the race was on again. The problem is that we were going into a major wind and we were in some major hills. I just stuck with the pack and honked my horn at every opportunity I had. It was a grueling day. We stopped at a park for lunch and Jodi lead us in a makeshift church service. It was fun. We stopped 4 miles from the border and I had a goal in my mind. I had not shared this with anybody, but since I was the first one into the stae, I wanted to be the first one out. The race was one and I was never so happy to see the Kansas sign. I crossed the line first! It was a shorter day, but the wind was a killer. We headed for the church in Falls City and as we turned the corner to go to the church, two ladies were in the middle of the street with a big finish line. It was so awesome.

At the church we had our award ceremony and everybody received a t-shirt and certificate of completion. Then they awarded the green jersey to one final person. The problem is that Brian Korrell wore it earlier in the day and it was too warm for him so he stuck it in his back pocket. It would have been fine, but it slipped out and got stuck on his back wheel. So the nice jersey was now a little greasy and had a small tear in it. The cool thing is that they awarded it to me!! YEAH!!! Hope Jen can get the grease out.

After the awards were handed out we began the process of dropping people off in their cars on the way to Grand Island. It was a bit sad because you had shared so much with these people and now a simple good bye was all you could say. It just seemed a little shallow.

I couldn't wait to get home. There is something about getting to sleep in your own bed with your wife instead of a hotel room with a roommate in another bed. Unfortunately I had picked up such a bad cough that I ended up sleeping in the lazy boy in the living room. Oh joy! NOT!

The next day we kicked off our Kids Crusade in Burwell and I hit the ground running. I waited till Thursday night to unload my bike out of the trailer and it went straight into the garage. Jen thinks I should ride to loosen up my knee, but I think that I need to have a recall on that vote!! Thank you for everybody who helped, supported, and prayed for me on the ride. It was a truly unique experience. I was able to raise $545 for BGMC. Thank you so much!

Pastor Busch

The View From My Picture Window--as Mom, fill in Pastor, and expectant wife!!!!

Howdy friends and family! Today is the day Dave is coming home! It has been an interesting week as you have read and now, he will be home tonight! My day is packed full--from filling the pulpit at church for Dave to having lunch with the ladies, picking up the boys and then anxiously waiting for Dave to come home! More to come later!

2:40 p.m. Sunday afternoon...Wow...what a day...I filled the pulpit at church this morning for Dave and let me tell you, what a time it was. I had my sermon ready or so I thought, but this was not what the Lord would have had me preach and thus it was changed in 45 minutes! A sermon on Grandparents day! I don't envy any Pastor who has gone through that!

Following church, Julia, Jalise and I were able to spend Grandparent's Day with 10 Grandma's from our church eating together.

My afternoon was a nice quiet one as Jalise took a nap and Julia was with friends for the afternoon. I was able to wrap up a couple of my last minute projects before the boys and Dave got home.

8:00 p.m. After Jalise woke up, we drove to Sargent to meet Mom and Dad to pick up the Busch Boys. It was an uneventful ride. The boys are getting ready for bed and I am still waiting to hear from Dave about when he will get in! Oh how I have missed him!

10:00 p.m. Dave should be home in an hour or so...I am so tired. I want to stay awake for him when he gets here, but my eye lids are growing very heavy...must sleep...

11:45...HE'S HOME!!!!! He's tired, his knee is very swollen, he has a nasty cough, but he is home! He did it, he survived to tell about it and we are all very happy he is finally home...thanks to all who have called or emailed to check in. Missions Bike Ride 2010, we say so long for now...

From my picture window to yours, have a great new week! Remember, You CAN do all things through Christ who gives you strength!

The Race is On! Catch Me IF You Can!

Hello all!! Well this is the end of Day 5 and I got back on the bike today. I wish I would have ridden yesterday. The first little while was a noisy time. There were a lot of ooohhhs and oooowwwwsss and aaaahhhhhhhs. Then it calmed down and 5 miles in I found out that if I pedal harder, it felt better, so you know what that means. "Catch Me if you Can!!" or "The Race is On!" I was flying along and feeling great. I hated to stop because it hurt to stop. Around 40 miles I turned on to Highway 2 and turned on the juice. It was a fun ride and I even saw a Big Dog Scraper (that is what I build at Central Metal). 10 miles down the road I stopped and needed to top off my water bottles and lube my gears a little. As I was finishing my bike Rob Conner came flying up took a splash of water and took off. I thought I was alone. I was like “No way, I am going to catch him.” We only had 5 miles to lunch so no problem. The problem is that at the exit for Syracuse, Rob signaled left and drove by the exit. I was like “Ok …is he not stopping?” So I caught him and asked him if he was going to make a run for home. He said that if he stopped he would be done and I agreed. So we kicked it and we found out later that we were at least 30 minutes ahead of the last guys. We pulled into Nebraska City at 12:00. 68 miles in 4 hours 23 minutes. In fact we rode the last 20 miles without a stop. It was like I was riding with Dale again. Rob was on a mission and really wanted to get home and be done!! As for me I have one day left and around 70 miles in the hills and the wind! Thank you for all of your prayers and emails. I literally am only able to ride because God has given me the strength. Last night I was awarded the "Looks the most like road kill award" and tonight I was given the "Loudest rider award" thanks to my most awesome horn that my wife got me!! I think everybody got annoyed by it, but I loved it. I honked at trees, bikers, dogs, because I shifted gears, basically all the time! It was awesome! See you soon, one day left!!

Pastor Busch

Single Parenting Day 5--A Quiet Day of Rest--I mean WORK!

Howdy friends and family...Oh what a night! And not like the song that talks of love! Julia and I enjoyed our coke floats and popcorn and plugged in the movie Valentine's Day...which was a really good movie I think-I watched the back of my eyelids more than I did the movie! I sat down on the couch and don't think I saw more than 20 minutes of that movie last night!

Well, after dragging myself back upstairs to crawl into bed, I was just getting comfortable and lil Miss Jalise woke up screaming--which lasted for 2 1/2 hours straight. I tried everything from holding her to walking with her, rocking her, giving her medicine to screaming with her, all to no avail! Finally at 3:30 she gave up the ghost and slept restlessly in my arms.

My alarm was set to go off at 7 a.m. this morning because the Busch Boys were heading to Broken Bow to spend the night with Grandpa and Grandma Miller so that I could get some things done around the house and finish my preparations for tomorrows sermon. When that alarm went off my first thought was to yank it out of the wall and throw it through the window, but of course, I just climbed from my bed and shut it off as quick as I could so not to wake Jalise. But as you guessed it, no luck. She woke up and still grumpy--along with her older brother Jacob! He didn't have his stuff ready to go and he was in no mood to get it ready. Then Caleb proceeded to tell me that his shoes were wet because Isaac had thrown them in the pool and he couldn't find his sweatshirt and the soap opera continued. By the time we finally got out the door, I am sure you could see sparks coming out my ears today! I drove them to Ord where a friend of mine took them to Bow since she was heading that way anyway to watch her son run Cross Country.

I got back to Burwell and my thoughts were "Wonder if I can get Jalise in the house and she will stay asleep and I can crawl back in my bed..." as I was pondering this in the garage I heard the answer from the back seat...it was a very shrill "NO!"

We made our way into the house, had breakfast and started in on laundry and the boys' room...Four garbage sacks later, I had found my good spatula and tabasco sauce under Caleb's bed! I laughed out loud knowing that he hid them from me thinking that I would never find them so he couldn't get punished any more...ha! I got the last laugh there Sonny!

My sis and three of her kids came up today to help me paint Jalise's room. It finally looks like a little girl's room with cute lavendar and oak bluff walls. No more black magic marker target from Isaac. Jalise seems to enjoy it very much! She walks in and out and says "ohhhh" all while pointing and smiling at the walls!

Some other major improvements on the house are in the process of being completed today as well...those will have to be finished up tomorrow because day turned into night and there was still finishing touches needed to be put on a sermon!

Soooo, from my newly improved picture window to yours, have a great night!