Thank heavens for cell phones!

Got a call a couple nights ago from the the Everest Crew! They are all doing well. Big T (Gimli) and Pipin both got what they think was food poisoning. Gimli recovered quicker than Pipin thus losing out on the chance to get carried up the mountain on horse back. They both are doing better and both hiking on their own two feet once again.

Mo and R were ecstatic with the amazing views and I was shocked to here they had already had their first glimpses of Mt. Everest from Namche Bazaar.

Not sure I've ever seen R this excited about anything.

The weather has been fairly mild and no one has complained yet of being too cold. I wonder if that may change as they go higher (better not after spending all that money on cold weather gear)!

They all sounded in great spirits and have been pleasantly surprised with the taste and quality of food so far and grateful for the months of training they put in to be prepared! And thanks to their pre-hike trips to the sub zero freezer at ACSA to test out their gear, hopefully no one will come home with frostbite! I'm sure all their advanced preparation will serve them all well.

Temperature gage in the ACSA freezer.

Carving out a space between the tater-tots and frozen orange juice.
Two frozen peas in a pod!

The fellowship on ice.

On the home front, Me and the two little ones are trying not to miss the rest of our family too much, but its kinda hard when I'm sitting alone on Christmas Eve writing a blog post rather than enjoying quiet time with my husband before the hustle and bustle of Christmas morning begins. But knowing they will remember this experience for the rest of their lives helps make the sacrifice seem worthwhile.

Merry Christmas!

Fellowship Day 6

Khumjung to Dole (4090m) 13418 ft
This is the most difficult trek among the rest, leaving the main trail to Mt. Everest, we will follow high on a ridge to 4000 meters past a large chorten at the village of Mong, said to be the birthplace of the saint Lama Sange Dorge, the reincarnate lama of Rongbuk Monastery in Tibet who introduced Buddhism to Khumbu. From there we descend to the village of Phortse Tenga by the Dudh Kosi (river). From Phortse the trail climbs steeply through forests of rhododendrons and then stands of juniper and large conifers as the altitude increases.

Fellowship of the Trek Day 5

Namche Bazaar to Jhumjung (3780m/5hours)12401ft

You will Climb to Syanboche, then trek to two serene Sherpa villages, Khumjung and Khude (3890m) where Sir Edmund Hillary established his first hospital and Khumjung (3790m) where he established a school, both in the early sixties. The Khumjung Gompa possess what is supposed to be a Yeti Skull. (Welcome to the Himalayas!)


P.S. We forced Mo to have her hair corn-rowed for this little adventure, to hopefully make things a little less complicated for her. So, as any good mother would do, I thought I'd throw in a couple of embarrassing photos of the process.
We hired a lady from the Congo, she started at 6:30pm and finished up at 11:30pm. That night Mo did not have a very good sense of humour. But on Day 2 was grateful she had it done.
Just in case your wondering why her hair is so dark; the lady had no idea Mo was white (guess we didn't think to mention that over the phone) and so she only brought black hair extentions.

Fellowship Of The Trek

R, Big T and Mo left on Thursday for their once in a lifetime adventure, hike to Base Camp Everest or as it has lovingly been dubbed by the adolescents of the group; The Fellowship of the Trek. They spent a good portion of their last group hike comparing and adopting characters from the original 'fellowhip' cast from Lord of the Rings. Below you can see what they came up with.

Boromir (Al), Pippin (Matt), Gimli (Big T), Legolas (Mo), Sam (Dave), Frodo (Zac), Merry (Cam), Aragorn (Richard), (Gandalf (Al's Dad) not pictured, but the only one with completely white hair so his character was a given)

(L to R: Al, Matt, Big T, Mo, Dave, Zac, Cam, Richard)

I've decided to try and give a little tidbit each day from their itinerary so anyone who would like to follow along vicariously may do so! The following is day 1-4

Day 1


Welcome to Kathmandu: (O/N @ Hotel Vaishali)

Langtang RI Representative will welcome groups at Kathmandu Airport with a banner and drop them to Hotel. After check-in at the hotel and refreshments, LRT- office management and guide will formally introduce themselves and provide a trip briefing. The rest of the day is to explore the local area.

Day 2


Kathmandu - Lukla fly (2800m/ 45min) Trek to Phakding (2600m/3 hours)

We will transfer you to Tribhuvan Airport for a twin Otter flight to STOL airstrip in Lukla that takes about 35 to 40 minutes. Our trekking crew at Lukla will recieve you. After final preparations, the treking starts passing Chaurikharka village, and makes a descent towards the Dudhkosi Ghat (2530m). the trail follows right back on the Dudhkosi River until camp at Phakding is reached. This first day is short for acclimatization reasons. Walking distance is approximately 4 hours.

Day 3

Phakding to Namche Bazaar (3450/ 6 hours)

You will have breakfast around 7, and you will trek along the river crossing it at different points by means of wooden bridges at Benkar (2713 m), Jarsale (2804 m), and two Hillary bridges at the confluence off the Bhotekosi and dudhkosi Rivers. You will stop for lunch near the confluence. after lunch, it is an uphill climb of over 304 meters towards Namche Bazaar. here your Park fees will be checked by the Park Check Post. There are shops, a health clinic, banks, and telephone services. Walking distance is approximately 6 to 7 hours.

Hillary Bridge

Day 4

Rest Day for acclimatization:

You can relax and take a look around the shops and Sherpa houses, observe their culture and life style in this beautiful valley surrounded by high hills and majestic snow-capped mountain peaks. A hike to the Everest View Hotel in Syangboche will be a good option. The rest day is intended for acclimatization purposes.

We have been lucky enough to talk with them a couple of times since they left. They are amazed by the incredible views and have already gotten to see Mt. Everest from their current position. A couple of the boys have gotten sick, Big T being one of them. He told me over the phone he was throwing up yesterday but felt much better today except for the diarrheas! Poor thing. Nothing like having the runs while hiking!

The excitement in their voices is contagious and I wish I was there with them. Who knows, maybe next year...

Condi visits Delhi!

On her somewhat sudden visit to New Delhi promoting solidarity between the US and India, Secretary Rice was gracious enough to devote a few minutes of her time to Embassy personnel and their families. She spoke outside the Ambassadors Residence to about 100 plus Americans and Indian hires. After a brief speech regarding India and terrorism she then stepped down to the awaiting crowd and shook hands and took a few photos.

It's unfortunate that, after two years of Richard being on her personal protection detail I had to come all the way to India to see her up close and personal. But however and wherever it happened I am still grateful for the oppurtunity all the same!

Mo was ecstatic about not only seeing her, but getting to take a picture with her (heck, even I was pretty chuffed about doing that myself!). She has been some what of a role model for Mo ever since she had to write a school report about her way back in 3rd grade.

Richard of course was doing security during the visit so we haven't seen much of him for the last 3 days, but I did get a few snap shots just to show the kids, "Yes that is too your Daddy!"

The white haired guy in some of the pics is the US Ambassador to India, Ambassador Mulford. Not as exciting as the Secretary, as we see him a bit more often but still a great photo op for Mo. She will have an amazing photo album to share with her children some day.

Why is Big T not pictured with the Secretary you ask? I think he was worried that she might not have withstood the aura of his 'coolness'...he is almost 17, need I say more?

Our Brother...our Friend.

In Loving Memory of Brandon Chandler Seipert.

Son, Brother, Husband, Father and Friend.

Brandon, you were a precious part of our family and our lives will never be the same.

We find great solace in the knowledge that you are at peace; and that the Lord will make you whole.

Until we meet again; may the Lord bless you, comfort you and heal you.

The Brothers: Brandon, Richard, Kyle, Jeff, & Todd

Psams 23

The Lord is my sherpherd; I shall not want....He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness ...though I walk through the shadow of the valley of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me ...thou annointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over ...and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

It's raining, its pouring, the old man is......... really, really wet!

I have used the expression "drown rat" to describe many a situations. Like when we bath the dog or see someone cruelly throw a cat in the lake (wasn't me, promise). Not to mention after the kids jump in the pool or come home soaked from the gym. But the day we took these pictures was the first time I've ever used that term to describe my own precarious state of being.
R and I had been at the school for Mo's swim meet when it started to rain. We naively crowded under a not-so-huge deck umbrella and waited, in hopes it would die down enough to walk home. But after a half hour under the umbrella we came to the not-so-quick conclusion that it was a lost cause. We had no choice but to make a run for it. One..two..ready...GO! Instantly we were soaked, we walked the rest of the way.
Unfortunately, the pictures do not do justice to just how badly it was raining or how soaking wet we actually were by the time we arrived home. I might as well have stopped by the pool and gone for a swim, I wouldn't have looked any different.





These pictures of Mishy show a little better just how much rain had fallen in the course of about a half hour. There was approx. 4-6 inches of standing water in the street in front of our house.




FYI: Yes, the swim meet was cancelled because of the rain.