It has begun

Josh left at 5am on Saturday to drive to Abilene for Kadesh with 27 other people. He will get home late on Saturday night while I am in Seattle. We will probably talk on the phone this week but it won't be much. For me, this kind of marks the beginning of the summer even though it is already late June. As much as I love summer, it also means that I have to deal with Josh's crazy schedule and being home alone.

I was thinking that I would almost rather him be gong 3 1/2 weeks in a row instead of home for a week, gone for a week, home for a week etc. It's funny how much just one week alone can change my routine- then Josh gets back and it changes again. It is a lot of adjust to. So many things happen when we are apart that we need a whole day just to sit and catch up sometimes.

I guess this is how our summers will be for a long, long time. I am glad that I have learned to enjoy and use the time by myself but I do wish that he was home. Josh traveling so much makes me nervous. Sometimes he has other drivers, sometimes its just him and a bunch of crazy teenagers. I find myself praying constantly through out the day for his health and safety.

So, if you know a youth minister's wife - give her a hug and have her over for dinner one night when she is alone for the week. It's a tough job but a huge blessing to be married to a man who gets paid (not a lot, but still paid) to go to camps and act crazy all summer.

My journal

I started keeping a diary when I was 7. It would talk about boys I thought were cute, why I was mad at my mom etc. I stopped for a long time but started up again in middle school. The journal then became more of a prayer book as well as things that happened. This continued into high school. I had special journals for trips to Africa and summer camps also. In college this habit evolved again. At that point it was mostly sermon notes, song lyrics, quotes and doodles as well as some diary type entires. The style stayed like that until very recently when I experienced the ectopic pregnancy.

I remember I had been home only a few days and was in bed all day long. I picked up the journal and started writting. From that point on I wrote every night. Most of the time it was a mix of thoughts, feelings and a lot of prayers. Some of those prayers were really angry and upset, some were joyful as I felt like I was starting to heal. After a month or so I went back and reread some old entries. I realized that it skipped from pleading for the health of the baby when I found out there could be a problem to several days after the surgery and hospital stay. I decided to go back and write down the whole experince and story. It was hard to do that but also really helpful at the same time.

Last night I put that journal on the shelf and started a new one. It was a suprisingly challenging experience. That book in particular is filled with a whole range of notes, prayers, joys, challenges, experiences and dreams. That is a huge part of mine and Josh's life. I love starting a new book because of all the possibilities of what will fill its pages. God has truly done some great things in our lives lately. It is such a blessing to be able to write down thoughts and prayers and know that they are being heard by such a loving God even when I'm angry and upset. He has shown us that he really is the comforter, protecter, and healer.

Summer Recipes

I was inspired to do this by my friend Amy's blog. She is a teacher/soon to be a stay at home mom. Amy mentioned how she enjoys being home to cook.

I love various summer recipes, especially those with seasonal fruits and veggies. I thought that I would share one of my favorites in hopes that people would reply with some that they likes as well.



Fruit Pizza
Press premade (or homeade) sugar cookies dough onto a slightly greased pizza pan.
Bake for 8-10 minutes until slightly brown.
Mix together 8oz. softened cream cheese and 8oz. cool whip then spread on cooled crust.
Top that with sliced fruit of your choice - I like to make pretty designs with things like strawberries, blueberries, mandarine oranges, kiwi and bananas.
Chill and serve.

I wish I had time to cook more - I love to experiment with new recipes or add my own twist to old ones. So often Josh and I aren't home on the same nights so it seems silly to cook a big meal. I need to just start getting into the habit of cooking more anyway - it can be cheaper than going out and healthier than eating cereal for dinner every night.

I look forward to seeing what you share!!

Blogging

This will probably be a little bit of venting but I'm ok with that.

I have heard several things lately about people thinking blogging is stupid if you don't have kids, and if you do have kids how you do have time to write on a blog. My thoughts are this:
I don't have any kids, not for lack of trying, but I think that there is nothing wrong with writting a blog about life. I fully intend to have a life and not lose my personality after I do have kids. I have gotten the impression from several people I have been around lately that "life starts when you have a family". I don't really agree with that at all. I love reading blogs of several of my friends who are married, single, parents etc. They all have things that are worthwhile to say and a life that is interesting to share.

So...to all you people whose blogs I read - thank you for writting and sharing part of your lives. To all of those who just read my blog - thank you, and please tell me if I am simply rambling and have nothing of interest to share.

Extreme Weekend

Friday morning Josh and I left for Glenwood Springs with 11 high schoolers and 5 other adults for the University Youth Group's Extreme Weekend. We got to Glenwood about lunch time, ate and then headed to Hanging Lake for a hike. This is one of my favorite hikes but its definitely not easy. The hike is about 1.5 miles and is a lot of "stairs" out of rock and is pretty steep. The lake itself is up on the mountain and beautiful.

That night we all slept at the Glenwood Springs Church of Christ. We were hoping to hang out with their youth group that night but the kids we all busy. Instead we hung out with Lauren and Matt who are interning with the Glenwod Church this summer. Last summer they both interned in Denison,TX with our friend Wes. Lauren and Matt are great and taught our kids a funny new game and then we played Sniper (kind of like capture the flag in the dark).

The next morning we woke up and got ready to go white water rafting!!! It was so so so fun but also freezing cold. My toes were completely numb and took 30 minutes to feel normal again once we were out of the water. The river was really full since it is early in the season and the snow melt is in full force. This meant that the rapids were high and the water was moving really fast. What a great adventure!! The kids seemed to love it and the adults had a great time too. I put several pictures up...

We were on the river for 3 hours then changed clothes, ate lunch and headed back to Denver. We were all completely wiped out on the way home. I'm already excited for next years trip!!!

Oops

Early this morning (I think about 5:30am) I was rolling over in my sleep and elbowed my poor, sleeping husband right in the eye. He sat up yelling (I would too if woken up by a blow to the face) which in turn woke me up. We eventually got an ice pack for Josh and were able to go back to sleep for a few minutes. Before I left for work I looked at his eye, it wasn't black and blue (yet) but was definitly puffy.

I feel terrible!!! Lately I have been tossing and turning more in my sleep than ever before. I really wouldn't blame Josh if he started sleeping on the couch permenantly from now on - for his own protection.

I'm sorry honey. I love you and I promise I was asleep and didn't do it on purpose!

Lunch with Friends

Today Josh and I were able to have lunch with some friends from Texas - Kelly and Jeannie Ross and their two sons Kyle and Casey as well as Kyle's girlfriend.

The Ross' were a family that was involved with the youth group when Josh was working at Pleasant Ridge in Arlington. Kelly taught classes, came on retreats and Jeannie was a sweet mom who did quite a bit with the youth group too. Josh was pretty close to Kyle - he even came to visit us for a week a few years ago. Casey wasn't in the youth group yet when we were there but he was involved in youth group stuff and was so fun to be around.

Casey and Kelly have come to stay with us on their way to Estes Park to camp and we saw Kelly and Jeannie when there were in Denver last year. They are in Colorado this week to camp in the mountians again. It is such a blessing to have old friends come visit. I love getting to talk to people who have known Josh and I for awhile, it feels refreshing and comforting. God has really blessed Josh and I by putting wonderful people into our lives.

Baseball

"The one constant through all the years has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past. It reminds us of all that once was good, and what could be again." - James Earl Jones in Field of Dreams (1989)

Tonight I get to go to my first baseball game of the summer. It the Rockies at home against the Brewers. I have loved baseball sine I was a little girl. My first memory of a game was at Fenway Park with my dad. Baseball has changed a lot over the years. I think right now I may love the history of baseball rather than the game itself. Right now it's a mess with steriods, huge contracts, egos etc. The history of basball is filled with great stories - Ted Williams was the last hitter to have an average over .400 in a single season (it was .406 in 1941), Lou Gehrig's streak of consecutive games was the record for over 50 years until it was broken in 1995 by Cal Ripken Jr, Dimaggio is said to be the greatest player ever and had a hitting streak of 56 games. There is so much about baseball history that I love: 1921 Yankees, Red Soxs finally breaking the curse, Hank Aaron (I was so sad when his home run record was broken), Babe Ruth, Joe Jackson, Stan Musial etc etc. Not that those guys were perfect at all - some of them were jerks like some players now are jerks but it seemed that they were so passionate about the game.
“The great trouble with baseball today is that most of the players are in the game for the money and that's it, not for the love of it, the excitement of it, the thrill of it.” Ty Cobb
Baseball may seem boring to some people but it's history and memories are amazing. I love the feeling of walking into a ballpark, watching baseball movies (2 of the 4 movies I have cried in were baseball movies), and seeing men do something great on the ball field. Going to a baseball game is a sure sign of summer and filled with memories - I will always love it.

Baby Wheeler

Today my good friend Sheila Wheeler and her husband Jonathan had their first baby - Brayden Mahesh Wheeler. Brayden was born by c-section this afternoon. He was 5 lbs 11ozs.

Sheila and Jon have been great friends to Josh and I here in Denver. They have a lot in common with us and we love to go hiking together and just hang out. They have been a great addition to our church family and we are so happy for them. I'm going to meet Brayden tomorrow - can't wait!!!

Janice Aletheia Webb

I call my sister Goober. I'm not sure why that got started but its been her nickname for a long time. Several years ago I gave her a James Avery charm that was a peanut for her birthday (a goober is a peanut).

My sweet "little" sister turned 18 yesterday. She is out of high school, getting ready for college and now legally able to buy lottery tickets. Aletheia and I were both adopted 8 1/2 years apart as infants. My parents adopted me, then had both of my brothers and then planned on adopting another girl. They even asked me what I wanted in a sister. I just wanted her to look like me. I remember answering the phone when the lady from Christian Services of the Southwest called to tell my mom and dad that they found me a sister. The day before we were supposed to drive to Dallas to pick Aletheia up from her foster home I broke my arm - I mean, it was a bad break, the bomes came out and everything. To make a long story short, I was in the hospital for about 3 days and had several surgeries so I was not able to go to Dallas to meet my new sister. To be fair my parents didnt take my brothers either.

One of the first pictures I have is of my mom, sister and I in matching outfits that my mom made us. I was trying to very carefully hold this cute baby with my right arm in a cast past the elbow. So, I now had a sister. We have shared a bedroom, gotten in fights, teamed up against our brothers, done girly things like getting facials, cried, laughed etc. She was the co-Maid of Honor at my wedding and I'm sure that someday (not too soon) I'll be in hers.

My one request was that my sister look like me - brown hair, brown eyes etc. She has the brown eyes, but her hair has lightened to a dark blong color and she is tall and thin like my brothers. I am the shortest kid by at least several inches.

I love having a little sister who is adopted like me. Our stories are very different but it is a unique bond that we share. I can't believe she is 18 now!! She went from a cute little girl with big ears and a pixie hair cut to a tall, beautiful young adult with an amazing singing voice and a loving heart.

Happy Birthday Goober. I love you.

Things I have thought today

1. I need to go to the bathroom.
2. 14 minutes until a meeting starts.
3. Facebook is addicting.
4. I have messy handwritting.
5. Jeez my calendar is full this week and next week.
6. When can I go to they gym today?
7. Did I eat lunch?
8. I think I did eat lunch, so why am I still hungry?
9. How do you spell appriciate?
10. I wish my phone would stop ringing.
11. I wish other people would answer the phone.
12. I need to get to the grocery store.
13. I need to go to the post office.
14. I need to remember to set my alarm to take my friends to the airport tomorrow.
15. My sister turned 18 today.
16. 2 minutes until I need to leave - enough time to write one last email.
17. My desk is a mess.
18. Wow, I think a lot of random things.