It's time for what some would call a vacation!

[uber frau]

Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong about the Gothard part! I know I saw SOMEBODY's wedding that had him show up at the end, and I could have sworn it was this one!

I'm pretty sure that was Robert and Kendalynn's wedding (remember he gave them his special Sheepskin of Fun/Prayer?), or possibly Priscilla and the Pecan Thief's wedding. I know he showed up at both, I'm not 100% sure which one he was so spectacularly late for.

ETA: It was R&K's wedding. I've included this link for a (reconstituted) thread for your edification and viewing pleasure:

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=51

[gardenvarietycitizen]

Oh man. That Maxwell wedding is what got me posting here. I remember reading the announcement and URL on the blog, loading it up, watching it live in snippets in between raking leaves outside. I remember my husband (raking leaves with me) just wondering what in the heck could possibly be remotely interesting about watching some random stranger's wedding live stream over the internet...? But it was great. Chatting with people about it live!

...and then the talk of DEATH. At a wedding. Which just violates every cultural rule I have, so it was over the top to 11. Just an endless SRSLY??? from me.

Man. Thanks for digging this thing up!

[MamaJunebug]

I take it one has to sign up for veoh to be able to watch the entire Chris/NR-Anna wedding - or am I missing something? Thanks for putting up with an internet-challenged FJian. :embarrassed:

[Fun-Dee]

You.

Are.

My.

Favorite.

Forever and ever and ever and you can tell ALL the others!!!!!! :dance:

Chris with stubble? Well, I guess that means the girls have all stopped shaving their legs .... but we'll never know, will we. :shifty:

ETA: Melanie doesn't have the approved toothy grin. No smoothies for you, girly. :shock:

I also noticed that. It makes me wonder if she might be pregnant as well, or maybe she just doesn't want to haul her youngest up a mountain. I'm not a very athletic person, so climbing a mountain doesn't sound very appealing to me with or without a toddler strapped to my back. It's interesting to see a non posed non fake smile picture though.

[marmalade]

Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong about the Gothard part! I know I saw SOMEBODY's wedding that had him show up at the end, and I could have sworn it was this one!

I think he was also late for Pecan Thief Brother's wedding, Adam and Valerie, IIRC. I watched that one and remember Gothard coming in at the end saying he was delayed at the airport due to weather.

[YPestis]

So..what's with Christopher and Nathan always joining the family later? Is there a reason for this? The nature walk with the toddlers seems like it would not be baby-friendly. I wonder what the family will be doing now that the entire clan has congregated. There will be bible time, getting up before dawn, hiking, more bible time, some cleaning mixed in. Honestly, there's not too much difference between what the Maxwells do at home and on their vacation, save for the mountain hiking. I just feel so bad for the younger Maxwell children. The world has so much to offer them, yet they are forever shut out from all those wonderful opportunities.

[Pathfinder]

One possible explanation for the stubble....

Maybe they are planning to organize/participate in a Christmas play set in Biblical times, and are growing beards in order to look the part. I can think of no other reason why Steve would allow it.

[ThatSnark]

I also noticed that. It makes me wonder if she might be pregnant as well, or maybe she just doesn't want to haul her youngest up a mountain. I'm not a very athletic person, so climbing a mountain doesn't sound very appealing to me with or without a toddler strapped to my back. It's interesting to see a non posed non fake smile picture though.

Maybe she's just really miserable having to put in the mandatory appearance and pretend she's having "fun" with these people.

[MamaJunebug]

Maybe she's just really miserable having to put in the mandatory appearance and pretend she's having "fun" with these people.

Big Mama Junebug was all about the little ones, and I kind of channeled how she would've reacted to see an early pre-schooler (Bethany) and toddlers (Christina and Chris, Jr.) on a rocky field like that. To wit: She would NOT have approved. My immediate next thought was that Melanie may have the same variety of common sense as did BMJB.

Chris, St., with his son in the backpack on that uneven checkerboard of acutely angled rocks totally reminded me of Peter Bradrick manfully bison-posing on a precipice with one - or maybe two - of his progeny in a similar backpack. Like some of you, I'm no real outdoorswoman and don't see the need to .... IMHO, show off*, Bradrick/Maxwell-style, with a little human in my care.

*I'm calling nobody here a show-off; if you are an outdoors type and have every self-confidence in packing your littles up hill and down dale, I'm in total endorsement of your choices. It's the Maxwells and Bradricks specifically upon whom I cast a disapproving eye.

[HoneyBunny]

Re: the man-stubble (and I'm convinced the girls never do shave, at least legs)...while it provides me entertainment and some degree of hope, it's depressing as hell that they're all doing it at the same time. Conformity, even in experimentation. Geesh!

[OkToBeTakei]

So..what's with Christopher and Nathan always joining the family later? Is there a reason for this? The nature walk with the toddlers seems like it would not be baby-friendly. I wonder what the family will be doing now that the entire clan has congregated. There will be bible time, getting up before dawn, hiking, more bible time, some cleaning mixed in. Honestly, there's not too much difference between what the Maxwells do at home and on their vacation, save for the mountain hiking. I just feel so bad for the younger Maxwell children. The world has so much to offer them, yet they are forever shut out from all those wonderful opportunities.

You forgot the feeding of the wee animal things. EXCITEMENT!

[jjmennonite]

Oh man. That Maxwell wedding is what got me posting here. I remember reading the announcement and URL on the blog, loading it up, watching it live in snippets in between raking leaves outside. I remember my husband (raking leaves with me) just wondering what in the heck could possibly be remotely interesting about watching some random stranger's wedding live stream over the internet...? But it was great. Chatting with people about it live!

...and then the talk of DEATH. At a wedding. Which just violates every cultural rule I have, so it was over the top to 11. Just an endless SRSLY??? from me.

Man. Thanks for digging this thing up!

I went to my fundie-lite (Pentecostal) cousin's wedding - it was her 2nd, and his 3rd marriage, and while they did not talk about DEATH, the preacher talked about BAGGAGE - for at least half of the talk. Then, while we were all waiting for him to push aside the baggage, and say something about them 'going forward with the Lord', the talk just ended, with the baggage... . . .

[sparkles]

So..what's with Christopher and Nathan always joining the family later? Is there a reason for this? The nature walk with the toddlers seems like it would not be baby-friendly. I wonder what the family will be doing now that the entire clan has congregated. There will be bible time, getting up before dawn, hiking, more bible time, some cleaning mixed in. Honestly, there's not too much difference between what the Maxwells do at home and on their vacation, save for the mountain hiking. I just feel so bad for the younger Maxwell children. The world has so much to offer them, yet they are forever shut out from all those wonderful opportunities.

I honestly don't think they care about what the world has to offer. They've been taught that it's all evil. Everything they say, everything they do, everything they think has be to about Jesus or death or it's worthless. They are now and probably always will be a world unto themselves.

[Rosie]

Seeing those toddlers on that rock field makes me twitchy. WTH are their parents thinking?

[sparkles]

Seeing those toddlers on that rock field makes me twitchy. WTH are their parents thinking?

That Jesus will protect them so why bother with those pesky common sense safety precautions?

[Rosie]

That Jesus will protect them so why bother with those pesky common sense safety precautions?

Seriously, just LOOK at this:

Melanie doesn't look too happy. Can you imagine wrangling a toddler there?

WHAT are they thinking?

[johnhugh]

Seeing those toddlers on that rock field makes me twitchy. WTH are their parents thinking?

Me too, it's the same as the girls climbing in those 'I love your mountain skirt' skirts.

Mel's hair is looking shorter. Stevie, do you think you should measure it? :naughty:

[johnhugh]

You forgot the feeding of the wee animal things. EXCITEMENT!

But the poor children are not allowed to ask to feed the chipmunks they have to pray to Jesus that it will be put onto Nate's heart that he will let them do it. :angry-banghead:

[DrPusey]

But the poor children are not allowed to ask to feed the chipmunks they have to pray to Jesus that it will be put onto Nate's heart that he will let them do it. :angry-banghead:

Not Nate's heart. Steve's, of course.

[Odd1Out]

Of course they have to feed the chipmunks at least once. Otherwise this vacation would not be identical to every other Colorado 'vacation' and we can't have that!!

[OkToBeTakei]

The photos on the rocky path don't bother me. What's the big deal? Parents are there within reach. I must be an awful Mother I let my baby/child toddle around on a pebble beach one holiday, swim in the sea, walk on tree root ridden forests etc. This lovely earth we live on is not made of marshmallows and soft bouncy manmade child protection. We are so sanitised in our childcare practices we forget that not all the world actually lives with footpaths, some Mum's might actually have to walk through worse than that with a child tied to their back just to get water.

Accidents happen anywhere with small kids, in that type of terrain parents tend to be vigilant, it's when the fall off some 'safe' piece of softplay equipment the injuries happen because ..well it's 'safe' dontcha know.

Kids look engaged and really interested in their new surroundings and considering this is MAXWELL we are talking about, anything that engages and piques their interest apart from Jesus is all good to me.

[YPestis]

The photos on the rocky path don't bother me. What's the big deal? Parents are there within reach. I must be an awful Mother I let my baby/child toddle around on a pebble beach one holiday, swim in the sea, walk on tree root ridden forests etc. This lovely earth we live on is not made of marshmallows and soft bouncy manmade child protection. We are so sanitised in our childcare practices we forget that not all the world actually lives with footpaths, some Mum's might actually have to walk through worse than that with a child tied to their back just to get water.

.

I'm not a mother so I can't too much but it looks like the rocky road is kind of uneven and difficult to walk on. It doesn't look safe for toddlers and babies to be playing around in. I wouldn't walk in that with heels which is what I estimate is how toddlers walk.

I agree that we've become overly protective of our children today but that doesn't mean the world is without real dangers. The pictures may be giving an inaccurate representation of the unevenness of the road, but it's not an area I'd let any little children onto. Then again, it could also be that my husband deals with head traumas and he talks constantly of people who fall and hit their head and think nothing of it. I guess I'm looking at those pics and thinking a toddler could be playing around the rocks, fall (as toddlers do) and hit their head and that's at least one unpleasant evening in the ER (not to mention the cost of the MRI).

[Maggie Mae]

The photos on the rocky path don't bother me. What's the big deal? Parents are there within reach. I must be an awful Mother I let my baby/child toddle around on a pebble beach one holiday, swim in the sea, walk on tree root ridden forests etc. This lovely earth we live on is not made of marshmallows and soft bouncy manmade child protection. We are so sanitised in our childcare practices we forget that not all the world actually lives with footpaths, some Mum's might actually have to walk through worse than that with a child tied to their back just to get water.

Accidents happen anywhere with small kids, in that type of terrain parents tend to be vigilant, it's when the fall off some 'safe' piece of softplay equipment the injuries happen because ..well it's 'safe' dontcha know.

Kids look engaged and really interested in their new surroundings and considering this is MAXWELL we are talking about, anything that engages and piques their interest apart from Jesus is all good to me.

I totally agree. That is a very short hike. They were less than an hour from the parking lot and it's steep, but not unreasonably steep (looks like 8% grade at it's steepest). I personally would be very uncomfortable hiking in a long skirt like that, but other than the skirts, I see nothing wrong with any of the pictures.

Oh, and they should stop feeding the wildlife. That kind of thing has been drilled into me since I was a kid. Don't feed wild animals! It is dangerous for both parties.

[Maggie Mae]

I'm not a mother so I can't too much but it looks like the rocky road is kind of uneven and difficult to walk on. It doesn't look safe for toddlers and babies to be playing around in. I wouldn't walk in that with heels which is what I estimate is how toddlers walk.

I agree that we've become overly protective of our children today but that doesn't mean the world is without real dangers. The pictures may be giving an inaccurate representation of the unevenness of the road, but it's not an area I'd let any little children onto. Then again, it could also be that my husband deals with head traumas and he talks constantly of people who fall and hit their head and think nothing of it. I guess I'm looking at those pics and thinking a toddler could be playing around the rocks, fall (as toddlers do) and hit their head and that's at least one unpleasant evening in the ER (not to mention the cost of the MRI).

I'd be more worried about rocks falling on any one of the Maxwell party. The toddlers were being watched very carefully.

[twin2]

One possible explanation for the stubble....

Maybe they are planning to organize/participate in a Christmas play set in Biblical times, and are growing beards in order to look the part. I can think of no other reason why Steve would allow it.

Something is definitely up with this stubble thing...........

I wonder if something new was laid upon Steve-Os heart.