August 31, 2011

day two hundred.forty.two


it is rare i am out the same time the sun sets. i am looking forward to another day.

August 30, 2011


first day of school. despite one mishap of our son leaving his bag of supplies home he had a great day. here he is playing at recess. it's great to see him as a student here. this morning he asked to come visit me, which he did, and asked to go home. but after some encouragement he had a great day and kept saying that long after school had ended.

August 28, 2011

day two hundred.forty


my first lesson plans in at least four years. it is like sliding into a comfortable pair of jeans you forgot you had hiding in the back of your closet. comforting and surprising that they still fit. tomorrow is going to be exciting for myself and our son. we packed his lunch and checked off all the needed supplies on his list. despite his two-mornings-a-week precursor last year, this preschool will be new and anxiety-ridden. all day. everyday. but in the school i am teaching at. i ran to walmart (one of the few places open in this hurricane threatened area) for some last minute classroom items and puzzling together each minute of the upcoming week.

August 26, 2011

day two hundred.thirty.eight

open house
our open house was this morning. i met six out of my sixteen students. this is going to be a great year. i am so happy to be back into the role of teacher.

August 24, 2011

August 20, 2011

day two hundred.thirty.two

day two hundred.thirty.two

my dad's career was celebrated today. he officially retired from life as a dentist. it seemed hundreds came out to rejoice with him. his retirement began earlier than planned, but nonetheless the next chapter in his life has begun. he and my mom face the unknown and i know that scares them. the last 32 years of their lives have been expected. planned. known. now the door has opened and the paths laid out. which to take? where to go? i know they ache to minister to the people of the dominican republic but only when my dad feels ready and able. i know God has it all mapped out for them. i pray their faith ever increases through this season of waiting to see what's next.

to see more photos head on over to flickr.

August 19, 2011

day two hundred.thirty.one



my dad and niece. it's been a while but my brother, sister and i (and our kids) had dinner with my parents. for various reasons (mostly work related) our spouses could not be there.

August 18, 2011

day two hundred.thirty

006

freshly polished floors. scoured clean tables. it is time to move in. last time i did this was ten years ago. nerves creeping up. still. at least i have my helper.











August 17, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.nine

barn

Deuteronomy 28:12 The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands.

August 16, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.eight

004

And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.

i am grateful to believe in a god that does not break his promises. ever.

August 15, 2011

August 14, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.six



a dismal day according to the weather. went to church. spent time home enjoying each other. even went to see a movie together. not too dismal when you have your family.

August 13, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.five

keurig
we finally have advanced to elite status with a keurig. we've thought about getting one for a while. every time i saw one i fell in covetousness. thanks to craigslist we own one. i love having a cup of coffee whenever i want which is usually all the time.

August 12, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.four



a local park was showing a movie outdoors! our son got a kick out of this. so did the ferocious mosquitoes. we left shortly after the movie started but it was fun.

August 11, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.three


worship. my husband is an extremely talent musician and once in a while i have the pleasure to listen to him lead our church in worship. even more rare is the opportunity i have to worship and sing along side him. this is that time. we practiced in our home for sunday's service tonight.

August 10, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.two

private concert

i have lost my photo taking momentum and instead of taking one today i found this one while perusing through old photos. it was taken nearly two years ago, but father and son still have their jam sessions.

August 09, 2011

day two hundred.twenty.one

010
another beach day. we went with a lovely friend of mine to a smaller beach. while there we met a boy who was in the same swimming class our son took at the YMCA back in april. unfortunately our trip was short lived as clouds covered us ever so lightly stealing the sun and warmth.

August 06, 2011

day two hundred.eighteen

002

strapping young men hard at work on a hot summer's morn. this is just another chapter in our plumbing/septic battle. a month ago we found out we need to replace our septic pipe, the one that runs from the home to the tank. not long, but not easy. the reputable plumbing company that broke this news to me was also asking for $4000 to dig up the pipe and replace it. i literally broke down in tears when he told me this. as if we had this kind of money just laying around [dave ramsey would scold us severely for not having an emergency fund for such an occasion as this]. but i believe in a God who does provide. but in ways i did not think of. there is a plumber by day, drummer by night in our church so one sunday my husband told him of our woes. this drumming plumber said if we dig up the pipe he would replace it. for free. f.r.e.e. we are willing to pay for parts and supplies, but this man's heart is impressive. after several weekends of not being able to dig, today was the day. these amazing guys from church [and a donut wielding father in law] came to our aide. because they wanted to. that is community.

August 05, 2011

August 04, 2011

day two hundred.sixteen

013

a while ago i decided to go back to full time teaching in the school i have been apart of since, literally, kindergarten. the fifth grade teacher decided to move on and everyone encouraged me to take the position. in fact the fifth grade teacher i had as student heard of this and passed down to me all her curriculum and supplemental material. our son is old enough to attend their pre-school and it just seemed natural to go back. when i was first asked about the job in april i was pregnant and my answer was an automatic no. i guess Someone had other plans for me. in fact the first thought i had leaving the ultrasound without a heartbeat was, 'well. i guess i can teach now.' i am not begrudging this decision, in fact i am ecstatic [even if my face doesn't show it]. it is just bittersweet thinking what happened for me to get here. so today i went by the school to pick up the curriculum i will be teaching. school begins in 22 days and i am so ready for this change in life to begin.

August 03, 2011

day two hundred.fifiteen

003

here is my life in a three story nutshell. i drove by the house i grew up in and thought, why NOT take a picture? not too nostalgic since i live about a mile from this house now. but every time i do drive by i am flooded with memories. when we moved in the house we first occupied the downstairs. shortly thereafter my father installed his dental office down there and we relocated up stairs. my bedroom was on the upstairs front porch for a while. i did not like that in the cold winters. soon the attic was converted to bedrooms where i lived for a while. i did not like that in the hot summers. i can't recall what age i was when we moved in to this house. i think i was younger than 10. and while i was planning my wedding my parents sold this house. a huge chunk of my life was spent here. climbing the trees on the left of the house to spy through the living room windows. riding our bikes in circles around the parking lot we had instead of a back yard. where our dog was run over by a mini van. very traumatic for me witnessing the whole thing. [in fact where i was sitting in my car taking the photo today was probably the exact spot the dog was hit.] propping up my stuffed animals on the side steps, setting up my first photo shoot. manning overpriced lemonade stands. every inch of that house is lined with memories, echoes of the past.

August 02, 2011