Boy, Time Flies

It always seems that summer is the season that goes by the fastest, yet it's the season that I wished stayed around the longest. I can already tell the days are getting shorter again. Why is summer flying by for us . . .

Day at Ocean City, NJ

We always talk about going to the beach just for the day, on a Saturday. Well, we made it happen. We ate breakfast at home, packed a picnic lunch, left the house at 8am, got to the beach by 10:15am, enjoyed a great day of sunshine and beach stuff, packed up our stuff at 4pm, ate dinner at Mack & Manco's on the boardwalk, walked around a bit, got some Johnson's caramel popcorn, got some Kohr's frozen custard, and got home by 9pm. It was like a mini vacation! Mike, Jenna, and Meridith joined us too -- lots of fun . . . we hope to do it again this summer. By looking at the picture, you can probably imagine how EVERYONE comments that Brian is so dark and I'm so white -- I have to explain that it's not mere sun exposure . . . it's that he has Native American in him, and I'm mostly Irish. (By the way, I'm tan :)!


Church Worship Committee
Our church has had a contemporary service and a traditional service for years, and we are recently considering combining the worship styles -- creating 2 services with the same worship. The thought is that our church would have a unified worship style, that families could attend either service knowing that both are the same, children would learn both praise & worship songs and hymns, and we would have one large worship team to pull from. So, a committee has been meeting every Tuesday night this summer to discuss the change. And, as you can imagine -- because music and worship can be such an emotional thing for people -- this topic can be at bit heated and multi-faceted.

Lots of Birthdays

Well, there have seemed to be a plethora of birthday's lately. So, I've been using my creative juices on how to maximize the gift and minimize the cost. I've been finding some great bargains lately. And, I've made a bit more stationary -- for my sister-in-law. A homemade gift can be so rewarding.

Seeing High School Peeps
Some of the alumni from my high school class recently starting getting back in touch with each other. I can't believe it's about time for our 10-Year Reunion. (I'm getting so old :). But, anyways, one of the alumnus invited whoever was still in the area over to his house on Saturday -- including us in their annual summer Caribbean party. It was a lot of fun -- seeing some old faces, catching up on the last 10 years, and enjoying great Caribbean food. And, to top it off, this alumnus' lives in my childhood neighborhood, so I took Brian down memory lane a bit -- showing him where my school bus stops were, where I had babysat, where I went running, where I fell off my bike and just laid in the street crying, where I had my first car wreck, . . . ya know, all that fun growing up stuff :) . . . no really, it was special.


Helping Friends Move
Two of my close girl friends are moving -- one within the same county, the other to far-away Greenville, SC. On Friday night, I got to help Tamara (the one staying in the area) and her husband pack up their kitchen and attic. Their kiddos were being watched by their in-laws, so we had a great time wrapping up the details before their move on Saturday. It is so refreshing to be with close friends -- whatever you're doing together. And, I actually got a used-but-new-for-us stainless steel trashcan from them that they won't need in their new house. It's the little things . . . that trashcan has brought a smile to my face the last few days . . . as I visit it often, cooking away in the kitchen.

Senior High Girl's Bible Study
Prior to getting engaged and married, I had worked a good deal with the senior high girls at our church -- having weekly Bible studies and various activities. Even though it was hard, I knew I had to step down from it in order to plan the wedding and carry on with other activities. Well, now is the time that I'm starting back up with them. Of course all the girls I had worked with are half-way through college -- yikes. But, it's been so great to get to know the girls moving up (soon to include my little sister!). I'll be taking over some in the fall, and will officially be taking things over in January (the other woman leader is having a baby in December). So, I'm excited for this time -- time that God will hopefully use in their lives (and mine!) to grow us closer to Him. I covet your prayers. (There are about 18 girls).

Quilting
This all started about 2 years ago . . . when we had a baby shower for Amy Claire. We thought it would be a great idea to email tons of ladies who couldn't make it to her shower, in order that they could send a quote or Scripture to include on a quilt we made for Brighton. We had such a great response from ladies, it took a while to simply get all the patches embroidered. It's quite a large quilt -- probably almost good timing because it could go on his big-boy bed. (It would have suffocated him in a crib). Well, 2 years later, the quilt is almost finished. I've been working on it regularly for the last month, trying to finish it before they move. Pictures will hopefully come in the near future.