Playing Catch Up

I've had writer's block for over a month now. I know: how can you have writer's block about your own life? Right? I'll spare you any more excuses of why I've let down on my blogging,  but I'm back to the blogosphere, and hopefully I can get back to my once-a-week schedule. There's a lot for you to catch up on.

First of all, happy mothers day to my beautiful mother. Late, I know. But since every day is mother's day, I really can't be late, now can I? 

The secret's out. My mom is SuperMom. 

Secondly, I've got to give a shout out, a "woo hoo," a "hip-hip hooray," a "congratulations" to my little 20 year old brother for earning his bachelors degree!

 I am so, so proud of you, Jordan! It may take a couple weeks for this "no more school" thing to sink in.What are you going to do now? Yes. Nevermind the fact that you just worked your butt off to get that degree; what's next, already!? :)

Next: there's been a new addition to our family, too (Anna, that's awesome about Big Red! Btw, it's been over a week now, so "Big Red" must be it, huh?).

Well, it's not really a welcome to the family, rather to my office. Welcome, Asus. That's my laptop. We'd been using Sam's laptop (supplied by his company) for both business and personal use, when one day, Sam said, "let's just get you a laptop!" And he did so that very day! It's my very first laptop--besides the one I got off eBay when still in college; it died two weeks later, so that doesn't count. But Asus stays upstairs in the guest bedroom (where my study corner is) and it's been great! Actually, it's really helped me limit my time on the computer. I'll explain. Sam's computer is in a very convenient spot: first level of the house = easy access. But with Asus, since I keep him upstairs--very inconvenient access--I couldn't help but notice how many times I decided NOT to get on the computer just because I didn't want to haul myself upstairs. Lazy, I know, but still--it showed me just how often I had a thought of "I need to use the computer." Also, we've been shutting down our computers whenever not in use--and that keeps me from using it, too. Having to boot it up each time...I figure, if I only want to check a blog, or craigslist something, or post pictures, or check the e-mail, I figure it can wait until I really need it and actually plan for it.

Since putting out the ferns on the front porch, we've noticed an increasing number of birds. Soon to follow was a nest in each fern. Three have eggs, and because they're so present all the time, I've named the birds who have laid them. The "couples" are: Wilfred and Patsy, Malcolm and Ingrid, and Clyde and Dorris. And yes, I talk to them--a true Snow White I am! Of course, some call my ways cockamamie. :)

Somewhere along the way, they hatched.

They grow up so fast!

Speaking of new additions, here's one of our Craigslist purchases: rocking chairs! Sabbath morning, we usually sit out there with our coffee and soak in the crisp air before the sun pops over the trees...though soon, it's sure to be muggy air. Occasionally, I'll invite my neighbor (Ms. Pam) to rock-out with me sipping some Mike's Hard Lemonade after a hard day's work. She's 67 years old and has some rather interesting stories, and with 5% alcohol in her, they're even more interesting! Just kidding peoples!

Out and about one day, Sam and I stopped at this antique store. Just outside the door of the store, Sam saw it...

the first bike he'd ever owned: a Schwinn! We joked later, "you know you're getting old when you can find your 'firsts' at an antique store."

A couple weeks ago, I had to take my car in to get some work done on it. There happens to be a park right across the road from the shop. It was a gorgeous day, so I tootled on over and spent a relaxing afternoon at the park. I sat down for a minute to rest when I noticed a young mother with her two children romping about (probably ages 7 and 5). Suddenly, the 5 year old said, "Mommy! Do you have any toilet paper? Because I have to poo!" I thought it was interesting that the first thing he shouted for was toilet paper instead of a toilet. Someone was thinking ahead!


A couple years ago, Ms. Pam (previously mentioned), paid a guy to install a brick wall around her rock beds. The man used tiny bricks layered on top of each other and glued them together, forming a "wall." Over the course of two years, and because the beds are on a slight slant, the rocks started to push the tiny wall over and in several places, broke through.

Needless to say, Ms. Pam was upset with the whole thing and decided to purchase some sturdy bricks from Lowes and have her son take out the old and install the new. However, after barely starting the project, and getting caught up with what's been going on in his own life, he hadn't been able to continue. So, my neighbor called me up and asked if I'd be able to help out. Of course! I really enjoy this sort of thing. I hadn't made plans for the week, so I planned for it. And after a good long day's work, we sat back and enjoyed the view! I only wish I had taken "before" pictures because this is a huge improvement. It was a lot of back work, but well worth it. Also, if something should go wrong with this wall, all she has to do is shout out the door and I'll come running!

 

Pentecost in Chattanooga was great! All day, 114 people clawed their way to get some time in with our visitor from headquarters: Mr. Turgeon! We were able to spend a good bit of time with him and truly enjoyed getting to know him better. And it was wonderful to see JP, Anna and the boys as we didn't get to really visit much with them. With those we did get to visit with, I really felt we had very fitting conversation and fellowship for the day. Unfortunately, there's just never enough time to get to visit with everyone. The flowers were beautiful--"spring" and "bride" was written all over them (I thought)--thanks to Kristen for her diligent work. The offertory music was great! JP, I never got to tell you what I thought of it! I really enjoyed the song itself--so far, it's been my favourite of all your selections--and you played it so well! We spent a little over six hours of the day driving, but I didn't even notice--that's how great of a day it was. Once again, God inspired every part of it!

That's about all there is for playing catch up. But I'll leave you with a "funny" just to leave you smiling for the day. :)